Ki  01 


Logical  st^S 


BL  1620  ,J3  1898 
Jastrow,  Morris,  1861-1^1 
The  religion  of  Babylonia 
and  Assyria 


11 


1b  a no boohs  on  tbe  Ibtstorv?  of  IRelicuons 


THE  RELIGION 


OF 


BABYLONIA  AND  ASSYRIA 


MORRIS   JASTROW,  JR.,  PH.D. 

(Leifzig) 
professor  of  semitic  languages  in  the  university  of  pennsylvania 


BOSTON,  U.S.A. 
GINN   &   COMPANY,    PUBLISHERS 

Cbc  atbcnarttm  press 
1898 


Copyright,  1898 
By   MORRIS  JASTROW,  Jk 


ALL   RIGHTS    RESERVED 


TO 

H.  B.  J. 

MY    FAITHFUL    COLLABORATOR 


PREFACE 


rXi 


It  requires  no  profound  knowledge  to  reach  the  conclusion 
that  the  time  has  not  yet  come  for  an  exhaustive  treatise  on  the 
religion  of  Babylonia  and  Assyria.  But  even  if  our  knowledge 
of  this  religion  were  more  advanced  than  it  is,  the  utility  of  an 
exhaustive  treatment  might  still  be  questioned.  Exhaustive 
treatises  are  apt  to  be  exhausting  to  both  reader  and  author ; 
and  however  exhaustive  (or  exhausting)  such  a  treatise  may  be, 
it  cannot  be  final  except  in  the  fond  imagination  of  the  writer. 
For  as  long  as  activity  prevails  in  any  branch  of  science,  all 
results  are  provisional.  Increasing  knowledge  leads  necessarily 
to  a  change  of  perspective  and  to  a  readjustment  of  views. 
The  chief  reason  for  writing  a  book  is  to  prepare  the  way  for 
the  next  one  on  the  same  subject. 

In  accordance  with  the  general  plan  of  this  Series  ]  of  Hand- 
books, it  has  been  my  chief  aim  to  gather  together  in  con- 
venient arrangement  and  readable  form  what  is  at  present 
known  about  the  religion  of  the  Babylonians  and  Assyrians. 
The  investigations  of  scholars  are  scattered  through  a  large 
variety  of  periodicals  and  monographs.  The  time  has  come 
for  focusing  the  results  reached,  for  sifting  the  certain  from 
the  uncertain,  and  the  uncertain  from  the  false.  This  work  of 
gathering  the  disjecta  membra  of  Assyriological  science  is 
essential  to  future  progress.  If  I  have  succeeded  in  my  chief 
aim,  I  shall  feel  amply  repaid  for  the  labor  involved. 

l  Set  forth  in  the  announcement  of  the  series  at  the  back  of  the  book  and  in  the 
Editor's  Prefatory  Note  to  Volume  I. 


viii  PREFACE. 

In  order  that  the  book  may  serve  as  a  guide  to  students,  the 
names  of  those  to  whose  researches  our  present  knowledge  of 
the  subject  is  due  have  frequently  been  introduced,  and  it  will 
be  found,  I  trust,  that  1  have  been  fair  to  all.1  At  the  same 
time,  1  have  naturally  not  hesitated  to  indicate  my  dissent  from 
virus  advanced  by  this  or  that  scholar,  and  it  will  also  be 
found,  I  trust,  that  in  the  course  of  my  studies  1  have  advanced 
thi  interpretation  of  the  general  theme  or  of  specific  facts  at 
various  points.  While,  therefore,  the  book  is  only  in  a  second- 
ary degree  sent  forth  as  an  original  contribution,  the  discus- 
sion of  mooted  points  will  enhance  its  value,  I  hope,  for  the 
specialist,  as  well  as  for  the  general  reader  and  student  for 
whom,  in  the  first  place,  the  volumes  of  this  series  are 
intended. 

The  disposition  of  the  subject  requires  a  word  of  explana- 
tion. After  the  two  introductory  chapters  (common  to  all  the 
volumes  of  the  series)  I  have  taken  up  the  pantheon  as  the 
natural  means  to  a  survey  of  the  field.  The  pantheon  is 
treated,  on  the  basis  of  the  historical  texts,  in  four  sections  : 
(i)  the  old  Babylonian  period,  (2)  the  middle  period,  or  the 
pantheon  in  the  days  of  Hammurabi,  (3)  the  Assyrian  pan- 
theon, and  (  |)  the  latest  or  neo-Babylonian  period.  The  most 
difficult  phase  has  naturally  been  the  old  Babylonian  pantheon. 
Much  is  uncertain  here.  Not  to  speak  of  the  chronology  which 
is  still  to  a  large  extent  guesswork,  the  identification  of  many 
of  tin-  gods  occurring  in  the  oldest  inscriptions,  with  their  later 
equivalents,  must  be  postponed  till  future  discoveries  shall  have 
cleared  away  the  many  obstacles  which  beset  the  path  of  the 
scholar.  The  discoveries  at  Telloh  and  Nippur  have  occa- 
sioned a  recasting  of  our  views,  but  new  problems  have  arisen 
as  rapidly  as  old  ones  have  been  solved.  I  have  been  espe- 
cially careful   in  this  section   not  to  pass  beyond  the  range  of 

1  In  the  index,  however,  names  of  scholars  have  only  been  introduced  where 
absolutely  necessary  to  the  subjei  t. 


PREFACE.  IX 

what  is  definitely  known,  or,  at  the  most,  what  may  be  regarded 
as  tolerably  certain.  Throughout  the  chapters  on  the  pantheon, 
I  have  endeavored  to  preserve  the  attitude  of  being  '  open  to 
conviction  '  —  an  attitude  on  which  at  present  too  much  stress 
can  hardly  be  laid. 

The  second  division  of  the  subject  is  represented  by  the 
religious  literature.  With  this  literature  as  a  guide,  the  views 
held  by  the  Babylonians  and  Assyrians  regarding  magic  and 
oracles,  regarding  the  relationship  to  the  gods,  the  creation  ,of 
the  world,  and  the  views  of  life  after  death  have  been  illustrated 
by  copious  translations,  together  with  discussions  of  the  speci- 
mens chosen.  The  translations,  I  may  add,  have  been  made 
direct  from  the  original  texts,  and  aim  to  be  as  literal  as  is 
consonant  with  presentation  in  idiomatic  English. 

The  religious  architecture,  the  history  of  the  temples,  and  the 
cult  form  the  subject  of  the  third  division.  Here  again  there 
is  much  which  is  still  uncertain,  and  this  uncertainty  accounts 
for  the  unequal  subdivisions  of  the  theme  which  will  not 
escape  the  reader. 

Following  the  general  plan  of  the  series,  the  last  chapter  of 
the  book  is  devoted  to  a  general  estimate  and  to  a  consideration 
of  the  influence  exerted  by  the  religion  of  Babylonia  and  Assyria. 

In  the  transliteration  of  proper  names,  I  have  followed  con- 
ventional methods  for  well-known  names  (like  Nebuchadnezzar), 
and  the  general  usage  of  scholars  in  the  case  of  others.  In 
some  cases  I  have  furnished  a  transliteration  of  my  own ;  and 
for  the  famous  Assyrian  king,  to  whom  we  owe  so  much  of  the 
material  for  the  study  of  the  Babylonian  and  Assyrian  religion, 
Ashurbanabal,  I  have  retained  the  older  usage  of  writing  it 
with  a  l>,  following  in  this  respect  Lehman,  whose  arguments  * 
in  favor  of  this  pronunciation  for  the  last  element  in  the  name 
I  regard  as  on  the  whole  acceptable. 

1  In  his  work,  Samassum-ukin  Konig  von  Babylonian,  pp.  16-21.  Hence,  I  also 
write  Ashurnasirbal. 


x  PREFACE. 

I  have  reasons  to  regret  the  proportions  to  which  the  work 
has  grown.  These  proportions  were  entirely  unforeseen  when 
I  began  the  book,  and  have  been  occasioned  mainly  by  the 
large  amount  of  material  that  has  been  made  available  by 
numerous  important  publications  that  appeared  after  the  actual 
writing  of  the  book  had  begun.  This  constant  increase  of 
material  necessitated  constant  revision  of  chapters  ;  and  such 
revision  was  inseparable  from  enlargement.  I  may  conscien- 
tiously say  that  J  have  studied  these  recent  publications  thor- 
oughlv  as  they  appeared,  and  have  embodied  at  the  proper 
place  the  results  reached  by  others  and  which  appeared  to  me 
acceptable.  The  work,  therefore,  as  now  given  to  the  public 
may  fairly  be  said  to  represent  the  state  of  present  knowledge. 

In  a  science  that  grows  so  rapidly  as  Assyriology,  to  which 
more  than  to  many  others  the  adage  of  dies  diem  docet  is  appli- 
cable, there  is  great  danger  of  producing  a  piece  of  work  that 
is  antiquated  before  it  leaves  the  press.  At  times  a  publication 
appeared  too  late  to  be  utilized.  So  Delitzsch's  important  con- 
tribution to  the  origin  of  cuneiform  writing1  was  published  long 
after  the  introductory  chapters  had  been  printed.  In  this 
book  he  practically  abandons  his  position  on  the  Sumerian 
question  (as  set  forth  on  p.  22  of  this  volume)  and  once  more 
joins  the  opposite  camp.  As  far  as  my  own  position  is  con- 
cerned, I  do  not  feel  called  upon  to  make  any  changes  from 
the  statements  found  in  chapter  i.,  even  after  reading  Weiss- 
bach's  Die  Sumerische  Frage  (Leipzig,  1898),  —  the  latest  con- 
tribution to  the  subject,  which  is  valuable  as  a  history  of 
the  controversy,  but  offers  little  that  is  new.  Delitzsch's  name 
must  now  be  removed  from  the  list  of  those  who  accept 
Hale'vy's  thesis  ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  Halevy  has  gained  a 
strong  ally  in  F.  Thureau-Dangin,  whose  special  studies  in  the 
old  Babylonian  inscriptions  lend  great  weight  to  his  utterances 
on  the  origin  of  the  cuneiform  script.  Dr.  Alfred  Jeremias,  of 
1  Die  Entstehung  des  altesten  Silt  rift  systems  (Leipzig,  1897). 


PREFACE.  XI 

Leipzig,  is  likewise  to  be  added  to  the  adherents  of  Hale'vy. 
The  Sumero- Akkadian  controversy  is  not  yet  settled,  and  mean- 
while it  is  well  to  bear  in  mind  that  not  every  Assyriologist  is 
qualified  to  pronounce  an  opinion  on  the  subject.  A  special 
study  is  required,  and  but  few  Assyriologists  have  made  such 
a  study.  Accepting  a  view  or  a  tradition  from  one's  teacher 
does  not  constitute  a  person  an  authority,  and  one  may  be  a 
very  good  Assyriologist  without  having  views  on  the  contro- 
versy that  are  of  any  particular  value. 

Lastly,  I  desire  to  call  attention  to  the  Bibliography,  on  which 
much  time  has  been  spent,  and  which  will,  I  trust,  be  found 
satisfactory.  In  a  list  of  addenda  at  the  end  of  the  book,  I 
have  noted  some  errors  that  slipped  into  the  book,  and  I  have 
also  embodied  a  few  additions.  The  copious  index  is  the 
work  of  my  student,  Dr.  S.  Koppe,  and  it  gives  me  pleasure  to 
express  my  deep  obligations  to  him  for  the  able  and  painstaking 
manner  in  which  he  has  carried  out  the  work  so  kindly  under- 
taken by  him.  The  drawing  for  the  map  was  made  by  Mr.  J. 
Horace  Frank  of  Philadelphia. 

To  my  wife  more  thanks  are  due  than  I  can  convey  in 
words  for  her  share  in  the  work.  She  copied  almost  all  of 
the  manuscript,  and  in  doing  so  made  many  valuable  sugges- 
tions. Without  her  constant  aid  and  encouragement  I  would 
have  shrunk  from  a  task  which  at  times  seemed  too  formidable 
to  be  carried  to  a  successful  issue.  As  I  lay  down  my  pen 
after  several  years  of  devotion  to  this  book,  my  last  thought  is 
one  of  gratitude  to  the  beloved  partner  of  my  joys  and  sorrows. 


MORRIS    JASTROW,   Jr. 


University  of  Pennsylvania, 
June,  i8g8. 


XII 


CORRECTIONS    AND    ADDITIONS. 


line. 

22. 

35- 

IO. 

39- 

7- 

5'> 

26. 

51- 

28. 

61. 

See  Preface. 

I  sin  or  Nisin,  see  Lehmann's  Samas-sumukin,  I.  77;   Meissner's 

Beitrage  zuin  altbaby  Ionise  hen  Privatreckt,  p.  122. 
Read  'as  well  as  the  names  of  four  kings.' 
I'm     Hommel's    theory,    see    now    Jensen,   Zeits.  f.   Assyr.    X. 

342-344,  note. 
Insert  Dumuzi. 

Add  Shul-pa-udda,  Nin-akha-kuddu. 

l'.au  also  appears  as  Nin-din-dug,  i.e.,  'the  lady  who  restores  life.' 
See   Hilprecht,   Old  Babylonian   Inscription.':,   I.  2,   Nos.  1^5, 
1 06,  t  1 1 . 
72.  I  am  not  certain  now  whether  I'tu  and  liabbar  are  really  names 

or  only  epithets. 
74.  (  >n  A,  see  Hommel,  Journal  of  Transactions  of  Victoria  Institute, 

XXVIII.  35-36. 
84,12.     Here  and  elsewhere  it   is   understood    that  for  the  conventional 

form  Izdubar,  the  reading  Gilgamesh  is  to  be  preferred. 
95,  14.     Add  'is  devoted'  after  '  that  place.' 
99,  24.     Ur-shul-pa-uddu  is  a  ruler  of  Kish. 
102,  13.     For  Ku-anna,  see  IIIR.  67,  32  c-d. 

102,  24.     For  another  U-mu  as  a   title   of  Ramman,  see   Delitzsch,  Das 
Babylonische  Weltschopfungsepos,  p.  125,  note. 
Whether  the  deity   U-mu,   mentioned    IIIR.   66,  obv.   31,  is  our 
goddess  or  Ramman,  it  is  difficult  to  say  —  probably  the  latter. 
111,    2.     Xis.ilia  is  mentioned  in   company  with   the  great  gods  by  Nebo- 
polassar  (Hilprecht,   Old   Babylonian   Inscriptions,   I.  1.     PL 
32,  col.  II.  15). 
165.  Note  2.      On  these  proper  names,  see  Delitzsch's  "Assyriologische 

Miscellen  "  [Berichte  der  phil.-hist.  Classe  der  kgl.  sacks.  Gesell. 
d.  IViss.,  1S93,  pp.  183  sea.). 
488.  Note  1.     See  now   Scheil's  article  "  Recueil   de  Travaux,"  etc., 

XX.  55-59- 

529.  The  form  Di-ib-ba-ra  has  now  been  found.     See  Scheil's  "Recueil 

de  Travaux,"  etc.,  X  X.  57. 
589.  Note  3.     See   now   Hommel,   Expository   Times,  VIII,  472,  and 

Baudissin,  //>.  I  X.  40-45. 
635,  12.     For   '  Dumuzi'  read  '  Dumuzi-zu-aba.' 


CONTENTS. 


~*-2E+~ 


CHAPTER 

I. 

II. 

III. 

IV. 

V. 

VI. 

VII. 

VIII. 

IX. 

X. 

XI. 

XII. 

XIII. 

XIV. 

^      XV. 

XVI. 

XVII. 

XVIII. 

XIX. 

XX. 

XXI. 

XXII. 

XXIII. 

XXIV. 

XXV. 

XXVI. 

XXVII. 


PAGE 

Introduction ! 

The  Land  and  the  People 26 

General  Traits  of  the  Old  Babylonian  Pantheon  48 
Babylonian  Gods  Prior  to  the  Days  of  Hammu- 
rabi      51 

The  Consorts  of  the  Gods 104 

Gudea's  Pantheon 106 

Summary II2 

The  Pantheon  in  the  Days  of  Hammurabi    .        .116 
The  Gods  in  the  Temple  Lists  and  in  the  Legal 

and  Commercial  Documents     ....  165 

The  Minor  Gods  in  the  Period  of  Hammurabi     .  171 

Survivals  of  Animism  in  the  Babylonian  Religion  1S0 

The  Assyrian  Pantheon 188 

The    Triad    and    the    Combined     Invocation    of 

Deities 235 

The  Neo-Babylonian  Period 239 

The  Religious  Literature  of  Babylonia                 .  245 

The  Magical  Texts                                     •  253 

The  Prayers  and  Hymns      .                 ....  294 

Penitential  Psalms 312 

Oracles  and  Omens 3-s 

Various  Classes  of  Omens       .        .        ...  352 

The  Cosmology  of  the  Babylonians         .                 .  407 

The  Zodiacal  System  of  the  Babylonians           .  454 
The  Gilgamesh  Epic      .         .         •         •         •        •         -4^7 

Myths  and  Legends 5lS 

The  Views  of  Life  after  Death       .                        '  •  556 

The  Temples  and  the  Cult 612 

Conclusion ...  690 


THE  RELIGION  OF  BABYLONIA  AND  ASSYRIA. 


►*-§i 


CHAPTER  I.  — INTRODUCTION. 
SOURCES     AND     METHODS     OF     STUDY. 

I. 

Until  about  the  middle  of  this  century,  our  knowledge  of 
the  religion  of  the  Babylonians  and  Assyrians  was  exceedingly 
scant.  No  records  existed  that  were  contemporaneous  with  the 
period  covered  by  Babylonian- Assyrian  history;  no  monuments 
of  the  past  were  preserved  that  might,  in  default  of  records, 
throw  light  upon  the  religious  ideas  and  customs  that  once 
prevailed  in  Mesopotamia.  The  only  sources  at  command  were 
the  incidental  notices  -  -  insufficient  and  fragmentary  in  char- 
acter   that  occurred  in  the  Old  Testament,  in  Herodotus,  in 

Eusebius,  Syncellus,  and  Diodorus.  Of  these,  again,  only  the 
two  first-named,  the  Old  Testament  and  Herodotus,  can  be 
termed  direct  sources ;  the  rest  simply  reproduce  extracts  from 
other  works,  notably  from  Ctesias,  the  contemporary  of  Xeno- 
phon,  from  Berosus,  a  priest  of  the  temple  of  Bel  in  Babylonia, 
who  lived  about  the  time  of  Alexander  the  Great,  or  shortly 
after,  and  from  Apollodorus,  Abydenus,  Alexander  Polyhistor, 
and  Nicolas  of  Damascus,  all  of  whom  being  subsequent  to 
Berosus,  either  quote  the  latter  or  are  dependent  upon  him. 

Of  all  these  sources  it  may  be  said,  that  what  information 
they  furnish  of  Babylonia  and  Assyria  bears  largely  upon  the 
political  history,   and  only  to   a   very   small   degree   upon   the 


2  HAHYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

religion.  In  the  Old  Testament,  the  two  empires  appear  only 
as  they  enter  into  relations  with  the  Hebrews,  and  since 
Hebrew  history  is  not  traced  back  beyond  the  appearance  of 
the  clans  of  Terah  in  Palestine,  there  is  found  previous  to  this 
period,  barring  the  account  of  the  migrations  of  the  Terahites 
in  Mesopotamia,  only  the  mention  of  the  Tigris  and  Euphrates 
among  the  streams  watering  the  legendary  Garden  of  Eden, 
the  incidental  reference  to  Nimrod  and  his  empire,  which  is 
made  to  include  the  capitol  cities  of  the  Northern  and  Southern 
Mesopotamian  districts,  and  the  story  of  the  founding  of  the 
city  of  Babylon,  followed  by  the  dispersion  of  mankind  from 
their  central  habitation  in  the  Euphrates  Valley.  The  followers 
of  Abram,  becoming  involved  in  the  attempts  of  Palestinian 
chieftains  to  throw  off  the  yoke  of  Babylonian  supremacy,  an 
occasion  is  found  for  introducing  Mesopotamia  again,  and  so 
the  family  history  of  the  Hebrew  tribes  superinduces  at  odd 
times  a  reference  to  the  old  settlements  on  the  Euphrates,  but  it 
is  not  until  the  political  struggles  of  the  two  Hebrew  king- 
doms against  the  inevitable  subjection  to  the  superior  force  of 
Assyrian  arms,  and  upon  the  fall  of  Assyria,  to  the  Babylonian 
power,  that  Assyria  and  Babylonia  engage  the  frequent  attention 
of  the  chronicler's  pen  and  of  the  prophet's  word.  Here,  too, 
the  political  situation  is  always  the  chief  factor,  and  it  is  only 
incidentally  that  the  religion  comes  into  play,  —  as  when  it  is 
said  that  Sennacherib,  the  king  of  Assyria,  was  murdered  while 
worshipping  in  the  temple  dedicated  to  a  deity,  Nisroch  ;  or 
when  a  prophet,  to  intensify  the  picture  of  the  degradation  to 
which  the  proud  king  of  Babylon  is  to  be  reduced,  introduces 
Babylonian  conceptions  of  the  nether  world  into  his  discourse.1 
Little,  too,  is  furnished  by  the  Book  of  Daniel,  despite  the  fact 
that    Babylon   is  the  center  of  action,  and  what  little  there  is 

i  Isaiah,  xiv.  For  the  Babylonian  views  contained  in  this  chapter,  see  Alfred 
Jeremias,  Die  Babylonisch-Assyrischen  Vorstellungen  vom  Leben  nach  don  '/'<>,/<•, 
pp.  1 12-116. 


SOURCES  AND   METHODS   OF  STUDY.  3 

bearing  on  the  religious  status,  such  as  the  significance  attached 
to  dreams,  and  the  implied  contrast  between  the  religion  of 
Daniel  and  his  companions,  and  that  of  Nebuchadnezzar  and 
the  Babylonians,  loses  some  of  its  force  by  the  late  origin  of 
the  book.  The  same  applies,  only  in  a  still  stronger  degree, 
to  the  Book  of  Judith,  in  which  Nineveh  is  the  center  of  the 
incidents  described. 

The  rabbinical  literature  produced  in  Palestine  and  Baby- 
lonia is  far  richer  in  notices  bearing  on  the  religious  practices 
of  Mesopotamia,  than  is  the  Old  Testament.  The  large  settle- 
ments of  Jews  in  Babylonia,  which,  beginning  in  the  sixth 
century  B.C.,  were  constantly  being  increased  by  fresh  accessions 
from  Palestine,  brought  the  professors  of  Judaism  face  to  face 
with  religious  conditions  abhorrent  to  their  souls.  In  the 
regulations  of  the  Rabbis  to  guard  their  followers  from  the 
influences  surrounding  them,  there  is  frequent  reference,  open 
or  implied,  to  Babylonish  practices,  to  the  festivals  of  the  Baby- 
lonians, to  the  images  of  their  gods,  to  their  forms  of  incanta- 
tions, and  other  things  besides  ;  but  these  notices  are  rendered 
obscure  by  their  indirect  character,  and  require  a  commentary 
that  can  only  be  furnished  by  that  knowledge  of  the  times 
which  they  take  for  granted.  To  this  difficulty,  there  must  be 
added  the  comparatively  late  date  of  the  notices,  which  demands 
an  exercise  of  care  before  applying  them  to  the  very  early  period 
to  which  the  religion  of  the  Babylonians  may  be  traced. 

Coming  to  Herodotus,  it  is  a  matter  of  great  regret  that  the 
history  of  Assyria,  which  he  declares  it  was  his  intention  to 
write,1  was  either  never  produced,  or  if  produced,  lost.  In 
accordance  with  the  general  usage  of  his  times,  Herodotus 
included  under  Assyria  the  whole  of  Mesopotamia,  both 
Assyria  proper  in  the  north  and  Southern  Mesopotamia.  His 
history  would  therefore  have  been  of  extraordinary  value,  and 
since  nothing  escaped  his  observant  eye  and  well-trained  mind, 

l  Book  i.  sec.  184. 


4  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

the  religious  customs  of  the  country  would  have  come  in  for 
their  full  share  of  attention.  As  it  is,  we  have  only  a  few 
notices  about  Babylonia  and  Assyria,  incidental  to  his  history 
of  Persia.1  Of  these,  the  majority  are  purely  historical,  chief 
among  which  is  an  epitome  of  the  country's  past  -  -  a  curious 
medley  of  fact  and  legend --and  the  famous  account  of  the 
capture  of  Babylon  by  Cyrus.  Fortunately,  however,  there  are 
four  notices  that  treat  of  the  religion  of  the  inhabitants:  the 
first,  a  description  of  an  eight-storied  tower,  surmounted  by  a 
temple  sacred  to  the  god  Bel ;  a  second  furnishing  a  rather 
detailed  account  of  another  temple,  also  sacred  to  Bel,  and 
situated  in  the  same  precinct  of  the  city  of  Babylon  ;  a  third 
notice  speaks,  though  with  provoking  brevity,  of  the  funeral 
customs  of  the  Babylonians  ;  while  in  a  fourth  he  describes  the 
rites  connected  with  the  worship  of  the  chief  goddess  of  the 
Babylonians,  which  impress  Herodotus,  who  failed  to  appreciate 
their  mystic  significance,  as  shameful.  We  have  no  reason  to 
believe  that  Ctesias'  account  of  the  Assyrian  monarchy,  under 
which  he,  like  Herodotus,  included  Babylonia,  contained  any 
reference  to  the  religion  at  all.  What  he  says  about  Babylonia 
and  Assyria  served  merely  as  an  introduction  to  Persian  history 
—  the  real  purpose  of  his  work  --  and  the  few  fragments  known 
chiefly  through  Diodorus  and  Eusebius,  deal  altogether  with 
the  succession  of  dynasties.  As  is  well  known,  the  lists  of 
Ctesias  have  fallen  into  utter  discredit  by  the  side  of  the 
ever-growing  confidence  in  the  native  traditions  as  reported  by 
Berosus. 

The  loss  of  the  latter's  history  of  Babylon  is  deplorable 
indeed  ;  its  value  would  have  been  greater  than  the  history  of 
Herodotus,  because  it  was  based,  as  we  know,  on  the  records 
and  documents  preserved  in  Babylonian  temples.  How  much 
of  the  history  dealt  with  the  religion  of  the  people,  it  is  difficult 
to  determine,  but  the  extracts  of  it  found  in  various  writers  show 

i  Book  i.  ("  Clio  "),  sees.  95,  102,  17S-200. 


SOURCES  AND   METHODS   OE  STUDY.  5 

that  starting,  like  the  Old  Testament,  with  the  beginning  of 
things,  Berosus  gave  a  full  account  of  the  cosmogony  of  the 
Babylonians.  Moreover,  the  early  history  of  Babylonia  being 
largely  legendary,  as  that  of  every  other  nation,  tales  of  the 
relations  existing  between  the  gods  and  mankind  —  relations 
that  are  always  close  in  the  earlier  stages  of  a  nation's  history 
—  must  have  abounded  in  the  pages  of  Berosus,  even  if  he  did 
not  include  in  his  work  a  special  section  devoted  to  an  account 
of  the  religion  that  still  was  practiced  in  his  days.  The 
quotations  from  Berosus  in  the  works  of  Josephus  are  all  of  a 
historical  character ;  those  in  Eusebius  and  Syncellus,  on  the 
contrary,  deal  with  the  religion  and  embrace  the  cosmogony  of 
the  Babylonians,  the  account  of  a  deluge  brought  on  by  the 
gods,  and  the  building  of  a  tower.  It  is  to  be  noted,  moreover, 
that  the  quotations  we  have  from  Berosus  are  not  direct,  for 
while  it  is  possible,  though  not  at  all  certain,  that  Josephus  was 
still  able  to  consult  the  works  of  Berosus,  Eusebius  and 
Syncellus  refer  to  Apollodorus,  Abydenus,  and  Alexander 
Polyhistor  as  their  authorities  for  the  statements  of  Berosus. 
Passing  in  this  way  through  several  hands,  the  authoritative 
value  of  the  comparatively  paltry  extracts  preserved,  is  dimin- 
ished, and  a  certain  amount  of  inaccuracy,  especially  in  details 
and  in  the  reading  of  proper  names,1  becomes  almost  inevitable. 
Lastly,  it  is  to  be  noted  that  the  list  of  Babylonian  kings  found 
in  the  famous  astronomical  work  of  Claudius  Ptolemaeus, 
valuable  as  it  is  for  historical  purposes,  has  no  connection  with 
the  religion  of  the  Babylonians. 

1  An  instructive  instance  is  furnished  by  the  mention  of  a  mystic  personage, 
"  Homoroka,"  which  now  turns  out  to  be — as  Professor  J.  H.  Wright  has  shown  — 
a  corruption  of  Marduk.     (See  Zeitschrift  fiir  Assyriologie,  x.  71-74.) 


BAB YLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  KhLlGWN. 


II. 

The  sum  total  of  the  information  thus  to  be  gleaned  from 
ancient  sources  for  an  elucidation  of  the  Babylonian-Assyrian 
religion  is  exceedingly  meagre,  sufficing  scarcely  for  determin- 
ing its  most  general  traits.  Moreover,  what  there  is,  requires  for 
the  most  part  a  control  through  confirmatory  evidence  which 
we  seek  for  in  vain,  in  biblical  or  classical  literature. 

This  control  has  now  been  furnished  by  the  remarkable  dis- 
coveries made  beneath  the  soil  of  Mesopotamia  since  the  year 
1842.  In  that  year  the  French  consul  at  Mosul,  P.  E.  Botta, 
aided  by  a  government  grant,  began  a  series  of  excavations  in 
the  mounds  that  line  the  banks  of  the  Tigris  opposite  Mosul. 
The  artificial  character  of  these  mounds  had  for  some  time 
been  recognized.  Botta's  first  finds  of  a  pronounced  character 
were  made  at  a  village  known  as  Khorsabad,  which  stood  on 
one  of  the  mounds  in  question.  Here,  at  a  short  distance 
below  the  surface,  he  came  across  the  remains  of  what  proved 
to  be  a  palace  of  enormous  extent.  The  sculptures  that  were 
found  in  this  palace  —  enormous  bulls  and  lions  resting  on 
backgrounds  of  limestone,  and  guarding  the  approaches  to 
the  palace  chambers,  or  long  rows  of  carvings  in  high  relief 
lining  the  palace  walls,  and  depicting  war  scenes,  building 
operations,  and  religious  processions  —  left  no  doubt  as  to  their 
belonging  to  an  ancient  period  of  history.  The  written  char- 
acters found  on  these  monuments  substantiated  the  view  that 
Botta  had  come  across  an  edifice  of  the  Assyrian  empire,  while 
subsequent  researches  furnished  the  important  detail  that  the 
excavated  edifice  lay  in  a  suburb  of  the  ancient  capitol  of 
Assyria,  Nineveh,  the  exact  site  of  which  was  directly  opposite 
Mosul.  Botta's  labors  extended  over  a  period  of  three  years  ; 
by  the  end  of  which  time,  having  laid  bare  the  greater  part  of 
the  palace,  he  had  gathered  a  large  mass  of  material  including 


SOURCES  AND   METHODS   OF  STUDY.  7 

many  smaller  objects  —  pottery,  furniture,  jewelry,  and  orna- 
ments —  that  might  serve  for  the  study  of  Assyrian  art  and  of 
Assyrian  antiquities,  while  the  written  records  accompanying 
the  monuments  placed  for  the  first  time  an  equally  considerable 
quantity  of  original  material  at  the  disposal  of  scholars  for  the 
history  of  Assyria.  All  that  could  be  transported  was  sent  to 
the  Louvre,  and  this  material  was  subsequently  published. 
Botta  was  followed  by  Austen  Henry  Layard,  who,  acting  as 
the  agent  of  the  British  Museum,  conducted  excavations  during 
the  years  1845-50,  first  at  a  mound  Nimrud,  some  fifteen  miles 
to  the  south  of  Khorsabad,  and  afterwards  on  the  site  of  Nineveh 
proper,  the  mound  Koyunjik,  opposite  Mosul,  besides  visiting 
and  examining  other  mounds  still  further  to  the  south  within 
the  district  of  Babylonia  proper. 

The  scope  of  Layard's  excavations  exceeded,  therefore,  those 
of  Botta ;  and  to  the  one  palace  at  Khorsabad,  he  added  three 
at  Nimrud  and  two  at  Koyunjik,  besides  finding  traces  of  a 
temple  and  other  buildings.  The  construction  of  these  edi- 
fices was  of  the  same  order  as  the  one  unearthed  by  Botta;  and 
as  at  the  latter,  there  was  a  large  yield  of  sculptures,  inscrip- 
tions, and  miscellaneous  objects.  A  new  feature,  however,  of 
Layard's  excavations  was  the  finding  of  several  rooms  filled  with 
fragments  of  small  and  large  clay  tablets  closely  inscribed  on  both 
sides  in  the  cuneiform  characters.  These  tablets,  about  30,000 
of  which  found  their  way  to  the  British  Museum,  proved  to  be 
the  remains  of  a  royal  library.  Their  contents  ranged  over  all 
departments  of  thought, — hymns,  incantations,  prayers,  epics, 
history,  legends,  mythology,  mathematics,  astronomy  constituting 
some  of  the  chief  divisions.  In  the  corners  of  the  palaces,  the 
foundation  records  were  also  found,  containing  in  each  case 
more  or  less  extended  annals  of  the  events  that  occurred  dur- 
ing the  reign  of  the  monarch  whose  official  residence  was  thus 
brought  to  light.  Through  Layard,  the  foundations  were  laid 
for   the    Assyrian    and    Babylonian    collections    of    the    British 


S  BAB  YLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Museum,  the  parts  of  which  exhibited  to  the  public  now  fill 
six  large  halls.  Fresh  sources  of  a  direct  character  were  thus 
added  for  the  study,  not  only  of  the  historical  unfolding  of 
the  Assyrian  empire,  but  through  the  tablets  of  the  royal 
library,  for  the  religion  of  ancient  Mesopotamia  as  well. 

The  stimulus  given  by  Botta  and  Layard  to  the  recovery  of 
the  records  and  monuments  of  antiquity  that  had  been  hidden 
from  view  for  more  than  two  thousand  years,  led  to  a  refresh- 
ing rivalry  between  England  and  France  in  continuing  a  work 
that  gave  promise  of  still  richer  returns  by  further  efforts. 
Victor  Place,  a  French  architect  of  note,  who  succeeded  Botta 
as  the  French  consul  at  Mosul,  devoted  his  term  of  service, 
from  1851  to  1S55,  towards  completing  the  excavations  at 
Khorsabad.  A  large  aftermath  rewarded  his  efforts.  Thanks, 
too,  to  his  technical  knowledge  and  that  of  his  assistant,  Felix 
Thomas,  M.  Place  was  enabled  more  accurately  to  determine 
the  architectural  construction  of  the  temples  and  palaces  of 
ancient  Assyria.  Within  this  same  period  (1852-1854)  an- 
other exploring  expedition  was  sent  out  to  Mesopotamia  by 
the  French  government,  under  the  leadership  of  Fulgence 
Fresnel,  in  whose  party  were  the  above-mentioned  Thomas 
and  the  distinguished  scholar  Jules  Oppert.  The  objective 
point  this  time  was  Southern  Mesopotamia,  the  mounds  of 
which  had  hitherto  not  been  touched,  many  not  even  identi- 
fied as  covering  the  remains  of  ancient  cities.  Much  valuable 
work  was  done  by  this  expedition  in  its  careful  study  of  the 
site  of  the  ancient  Babylon,  —  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  mod- 
ern village  Hillah,  some  forty  miles  south  of  Baghdad.  Un- 
fortunately, the  antiquities  recovered  at  this  place,  and  else- 
where, were  lost  through  the  sinking  of  the  rafts  as  they  carried 
their  precious  burden  down  the  Tigris.  In  the  south  again, 
the  English  followed  close  upon  the  heels  of  the  French.  J. 
E.  Taylor,  in  [854,  visited  many  of  the  huge  mounds  that  were 
scattered   throughout    Southern    Mesopotamia    in    much   larger 


SOURCES  AND   METHODS   OF  STUDY.  9 

numbers  than  in  the  north,  while  his  compatriot,  William  K. 
Loftus,  a  few  years  previous  had  begun  excavations,  though  on 
a  small  scale,  at  Warka,  the  site  of  the  ancient  city  of  Erech. 
He  also  conducted  some  investigations  at  a  mound  Mugheir, 
which  acquired  special  interest  as  the  supposed  site  of  the 
famous  Ur, — the  home  of  some  of  the  Terahites  before  the 
migration  to  Palestine.  Of  still  greater  significance  were  the 
examinations  made  by  Sir  Henry  Rawlinson,  in  1S54,  of  the 
only  considerable  ruins  of  ancient  Babylonia  that  remained 
above  the  surface,  --the  tower  of  Birs  Nimrud,  which  proved 
to  be  the  famous  seven-staged  temple  as  described  by  Herodo- 
tus. This  temple  was  completed,  as  the  foundation  records 
showed,  by  Nebuchadnezzar  II.,  in  the  sixth  century  before 
this  era;  but  the  beginnings  of  the  structure  belong  to  a 
much  earlier  period.  Another  sanctuary  erected  by  this  .  same 
king  was  found  near  the  tower.  Subsequent  researches  by 
Hormuzd  Rassam  made  it  certain  that  Borsippa,  the  ancient 
name  of  the  place  where  the  tower  and  sanctuaries  stood,  was 
a  suburb  of  the  great  city  of  Babylon  itself,  which  lay  directly 
opposite  on  the  east  side  of  the  Euphrates.  The  scope  of  the 
excavations  continued  to  grow  almost  from  year  to  year,  and 
while  new  mounds  were  being  attacked  in  the  south,  those  in 
the  north,  especially  Koujunjik,  continued  to  be  the  subject  of 
attention. 

Rassam,  who  has  just' been  mentioned,  was  in  a  favorable 
position,  through  his  long  residence  as  English  consul  at  Mosul, 
for  extracting  new  finds  from  the  mounds  in  this  vicinity.  Be- 
sides adding  more  than  a  thousand  tablets  from  the  royal  library 
discovered  by  Layard,  his  most  noteworthy  discoveries  were 
the  unearthing  of  a  magnificent  temple  at  Nimrud,  and  the 
finding  of  a  large  bronze  gate  at  Balawat,  a  few  miles  to  the 
northeast  of  Nimrud.  Rassam  and  Rawlinson  were  afterwards 
joined  by  George  Smith  of  the  British  Museum,  who,  institut- 
ing a  further  search  through  the  ruins  of  Koujunjik,  Nimrud, 


10  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Kalah-Shergat,  and  else  where,  made   many  valuable  additions 
to  the  English  collections,  until  his   unfortunate  death  in   1876, 
during  his   third  visit  to  the    mounds,  cut  him  off   in  the  prime 
of  a  brilliant    and   most  useful  career.      The  English   explorers 
extended  their  labors  to  the  mounds  in  the  south.    Here  it  was, 
principally  at  Abu-Habba,  that  they  set  their  forces  to  work. 
The   finding  of  another   temple   dedicated  to  the   sun-god  re- 
warded their  efforts.     The  foundation  records  showed  that  the 
edifice  was  one  of  great  antiquity,  which  was  permitted  to  fall 
into  decay  and   was  then   restored  by  a  ruler  whose  date  can 
be  fixed  at  the  middle  of  the  ninth  century  B.C.      The  ancient 
name  of  the  place  was  shown  to  be  Sippar,  and  the  fame  of  the 
temple  was  such,  that  subsequent  monarchs  vied  with  one  an- 
other in  adding  to  its  grandeur.      It  is  estimated  that  the  tem- 
ple contained  no  less  than  three  hundred  chambers  and  halls 
for  the  archives  and  for  the  accommodation  of  the  large  body  of 
priests  attached  to  this  temple.      In  the  archives   many  thou- 
sands of  little  clay  tablets  were  again  found,  not,  however,  of  a 
literary,  but  of  a  legal  character,  containing  records  of  commer- 
cial  transactions  conducted  in  ancient   Sippar,  such  as  sales  of 
houses,  of  fields,  of  produce,  of  stuffs,  money  loans,  receipts, 
contracts  for  work,  marriage  settlements,   and  the  like.     The 
execution  of  the  laws  being  in  the  hands  of  priests  in  ancient 
Mesopotamia,  the  temples  were  the  natural  depositories  for  the 
official   documents  of  the    law   courts.      Similar  collections   to 
those   of  Sippar   have  been   found    in   almost  every   mound  of 
Southern   Mesopotamia  that  has  been   opened  since  the  days 
of    Rassam.       So   at    Djumdjuma,    situated    near    the    site  of 
the   ancient   city  of    Babylon,    some    three   thousand   were   un- 
earthed that  were  added  to  the  fast  growing  collections  of  the 
British  Museum.    At  Borsippa, likewise,  Rawlinson  and  Rassam 
recovered  a  large   number  of  clay   tablets,  most  of  them   legal 
but   some   of  them  of  a  literary  character,  which    proved  to  be 
in  part  duplicates  of  those  in  the   royal  library  of  Ashurbana- 


SOURCES  AND   METHODS   OE  STUDY.  11 

bal.  In  this  way,  the  latter's  statement,  that  he  sent  his  scribes 
to  the  large  cities  of  the  south  for  the  purpose  of  collecting 
and  copying  the  literature  that  had  its  rise  there,  met  with  a 
striking  confirmation.  Still  further  to  the  south,  at  a  mound 
known  as  Telloh,  a  representative  of  the  French  government, 
Ernest  de  Sarzec,  began  a  series  of  excavations  in  1876,  which, 
continued  to  the  present  day,  have  brought  to  light  remains. of 
temples  and  palaces  exceeding  in  antiquity  those  hitherto  dis- 
covered. Colossal  statues  of  diorite,  covered  with  inscriptions, 
the  pottery,  tablets  and  ornaments,  showed  that  at  a  period  as 
early  as  3500  B.C.  civilization  in  this  region  had  already  reached 
a  very  advanced  stage.  The  systematic  and  thorough  manner 
in  which  De  Sarzec,  with,  inexhaustible  patience,  explored  the 
ancient  city,  has  resulted  in  largely  extending  our  knowledge 
of  the  most  ancient  period  of  Babylonian  history  as  yet  known 
to  us.  The  Telloh  finds  were  forwarded  to  the  Louvre,  which 
in  this  way  secured  a  collection  from  the  south  that  formed  a 
worthy  complement  to  the  Khorsabad  antiquities. 

Lastly,  it  is  gratifying  to  note  the  share  that  our  own  country 
has  recently  taken  in  the  great  work  that  has  furnished  the 
material  needed  for  following  the  history  of  the  Mesopotamian 
states.  In  1S87,  an  expedition  was  sent  out  under  the  auspi- 
ces of  the  University  of  Pennsylvania,  to  conduct  excavations 
at  Niffer,  —  a  mound  to  the  southeast  of  Babylon,  situated  on 
a  branch  of  the  Euphrates,  and  which  was  known  to  be  the 
site  of  one  of  the  most  famous  cities  in  this  region.  The  Rev. 
John  P.  Peters  (now  in  New  York),  who  was  largely  instru- 
mental in  raising  the  funds  for  the  purpose,  was  appointed 
director  of  the  expedition.  Excavations  were  continued  for 
two  years  under  Dr.  Peters'  personal  supervision,  and  since 
then  by  Mr.  John  H.  Haynes,  with  most  satisfactory  success. 
A  great  temple  dedicated  to  the  god  Bel  was  discovered,  and 
work  has  hitherto  been  confined  chiefly  to  laying  bare  the 
various  parts  of  the  edifice.     The  foundation  of  the  building 


12  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

goes  back  to  an  earlier  period  than  the  ruins  of  Telloh.  It 
survived  the  varying  fortunes  of  the  city  in  which  it  stood,  and 
each  period  of  Babylonian  history  left  its  traces  at  Niffer 
through  the  records  of  the  many  rulers  who  sought  the  favor 
of  the  god  by  enlarging  or  beautifying  his  place  of  worship. 
The  temple  became  a  favorite  spot  to  which  pilgrims  came 
from  all  sides  on  the  great  festivals,  to  offer  homage  at  the 
sacred  shrines.  Votive  offerings,  in  the  shape  of  inscribed 
clay  cones,  and  little  clay  images  of  Bel  and  of  his  female 
consort,  were  left  in  the  temple  as  witnesses  to  the  piety  of 
the  visitors.  The  archives  were  found  to  be  well  stocked  with 
the  official  legal  documents  dating  chiefly  from  the  period  of 
1700  to  1200  B.C.,  when  the  city  appears  to  have  reached  the 
climax  of  its  glory.  Other  parts  of  the  mound  were  opened  at 
different  depths,  and  various  layers  which  followed  the  chrono- 
logical development  of  the  place  were  determined.1  After  its 
destruction,  the  sanctity  of  the  city  was  in  a  measure  continued 
by  its  becoming  a  burial-place.  The  fortunes  of  the  place  can 
thus  be  followed  down  to  the  ninth  or  the  tenth  century  of  our 
era,  a  period  of  more  than  four  thousand  years.  Already 
more  than  20,000  tablets  have  been  received  at  the  University 
of  Pennsylvania,  besides  many  specimens  of  pottery,  bowls, 
jars,  cones,  and  images,  as  well  as  gold,  copper,  and  alabaster 
work. 

From  this  survey  of  the  work  done  in  the  last  decades  in 
exploring  the  long  lost  and  almost  forgotten  cities  of  the  Tigris 
and  of  the  Euphrates  Valley,  it  will  be  apparent  that  a  large 
amount  of  material  has  been  made  accessible  for  tracing  the 
course  of  civilization  in  this  region.  Restricting  ourselves  to 
that  portion  of  it  that  bears  on  the  religion  of  ancient  Meso- 
potamia, it  may  be  grouped  under  two  heads,  (1)  literary,  and 
(2)    archaeological.       The    religious    texts   of    Ashurbanabal's 

1  The  excavations  are  still  being  continued,  thanks  to  the  generosity  of  some 
public-spirited  citizens  of  Philadelphia. 


SOURCES  AND   METHODS   OF  STUDY.  13 

library  occupy  the  fust  place  in  the  literary  group.  The 
incantations,  the  prayers  and  hymns,  lists  of  temples,  of  gods 
and  their  attributes,  traditions  of  the  creation  of  the  world, 
legends  of  the  deities  and  of  their  relations  to  men,  are  sources 
of  the  most  direct  character ;  and  it  is  fortunate  that  among 
the  recovered  portions  of  the  library,  such  texts  are  largely 
represented.  Equally  direct  are  the  dedicatory  inscriptions 
set  up  by  the  kings  in  the  temples  erected  to  the  honor  of 
some  god,  and  of  great  importance  are  the  references  to  the 
various  gods,  their  attributes,  their  powers,  and  their  deeds, 
which  are  found  at  every  turn  in  the  historical  records  which 
the  kings  left  behind  them.  Many  of  these  records  open  or 
close  with  a  long  prayer  to  some  deity  ;  in  others,  prayers  are 
found  interspersed,  according  to  the  occasion  on  which  they 
were  offered  up.  Attributing  the  success  of  their  undertakings 
—  whether  it  be  a  military  campaign,  or  the  construction  of 
some  edifice,  or  a  successful  hunt  —  to  the  protection  offered 
by  the  gods,  the  kings  do  not  tire  of  singing  the  praises  of  the 
deity  or  deities  as  whose  favorites  they  regarded  themselves. 
The  gods  are  constantly  at  the  monarch's  side.  Now  we  are 
told  of  a  dream  sent  to  encourage  the  army  on  the  approach  of 
a  battle,  and  again  of  some  portent  which  bade  the  king  be 
of  good  cheer.  To  the  gods,  the  appeal  is  constantly  made,  and 
to  them  all  good  things  are  ascribed.  From  the  legal  docu- 
ments, likewise,  much  may  be  gathered  bearing  on  the  religion. 
The  protection  of  the  gods  is  invoked  or  their  curses  called 
down  ;  the  oath  is  taken  in  their  name  ;  while  the  manner  in 
which  the  temples  are  involved  in  the  commercial  life  of  ancient 
Babylonia  renders  these  tablets,  which  are  chiefly  valuable  as 
affording  us  a  remarkable  insight  into  the  people's  daily  life,  of 
importance  also  in  illustrating  certain  phases  of  the  religious 
organization  of  the  country.  Most  significant  for  the  position 
occupied  by  the  priests,  is  the  fact  that  the  latter  are  invariably 
the  scribes  who  draw  up  the  documents. 


14  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

The  archaeological  material  furnished  by  the  excavations 
consists  of  the  temples  of  the  gods,  their  interior  arrangement, 
and  provisions  for  the  various  religious  functions ;  secondly, 
the  statues  of  the  gods,  demi-gods,  and  the  demons,  the  altars 
and  the  vessels;  and  thirdly,  the  religious  scenes,  —  the  wor- 
ship of  some  deity,  the  carrying  of  the  gods  in  procession, 
the  pouring  of  libations,  the  performance  of  rites,  or  the 
representation  of  some  religious  symbols  sculptured  on  the 
palace  wall  or  on  the  foundation  stone  of  a  sacred  build- 
ing, or  cut  out  on  the  seal  cylinders,  used  as  signatures1 
and  talismans. 

Large  as  the  material  is,  it  is  far  from  being  exhausted,  and, 
indeed,  far  from  sufficient  for  illustrating  all  the  details  of  the 
religious  life.  This  will  not  appear  surprising,  if  it  be  remem- 
bered that  of  the  more  than  one  hundred  mounds  that  have  been 
identified  in  the  region  of  the  Tigris  and  Euphrates  as  contain- 
ing remains  of  buried  cities,  only  a  small  proportion  have  been 
explored,  and  of  these  scarcely  more  than  a  half  dozen  with 
an  approach  to  completeness.  The  soil  of  Mesopotamia 
unquestionably  holds  still  greater  treasures  than  those  which 
it  has  already  yielded.  The  links  uniting  the  most  ancient 
period  —  at  present,  c.  4000  B.C.  —  to  the  final  destruction  of  the 
Babylonian  empire  by  Cyrus,  in  the  middle  of  the  sixth  century 
B.C.,  are  far  from  being  complete.  For  entire  centuries  we  are 
wholly  in  the  dark,  and  for  others  only  a  few  skeleton  facts 
are  known  ;  and  until  these  gaps  shall  have  been  filled,  our 
knowledge  of  the  religion  of  the  Babylonians  and  Assyrians 
must  necessarily  remain  incomplete.  Not  as  incomplete, 
indeed,  as  their  history,  for  religious  rites  are  not  subject  to 
many  changes,  and  the  progress  of  religious  ideas  does  not 
keep  pace  with  the  constant  changes  in  the  political  kaleido- 
scope of  a  country  ;    but,  it  is  evident  that  no  exhaustive  treat- 

1    Tlic  parties  concerned  rolled  their  cylinders  over  the  clay  tablet  recording  a  legal 
or  commercial  transaction. 


SOURCES  AND   METHODS   OE  STUDY.  15 

ment  of  the  religion  can  be  given  until  the  material  shall  have 
become  adequate  to  the  subject. 

III. 

Before  proceeding  to  the  division  of  the  subject  in  hand, 
some  explanation  is  called  for  of  the  method  by  which  the 
literary  material  found  beneath  the  soil  has  been  made  intel- 
ligible. 

The  characters  on  the  clay  tablets  and  cylinders,  on  the 
limestone  slabs,  on  statues,  on  altars,  on  stone  monuments, 
are  generally  known  as  cuneiform,  because  of  their  wedge- 
shaped  appearance,  though  it  may  be  noted  at  once  that  in 
their  oldest  form  the  characters  are  linear  rather  than  wedsre- 
shaped,  presenting  the  more  or  less  clearly  denned  outlines 
of  objects  from  which  they  appear  to  be  derived.  At  the 
time  when  these  cuneiform  inscriptions  began  to  be  found 
in  Mesopotamia,  the  language  which  these  characters  expressed 
was  still  totally  unknown.  Long  previous  to  the  beginning 
of  Botta's  labors,  inscriptions  also  showing  the  cuneiform 
characters  had  been  found  at  Persepolis  on  various  monu- 
ments of  the  ruins  and  tombs  still  existing  at  that  place.  The 
first  notice  of  these  inscriptions  was  brought  to  Europe  by  a 
famous  Italian  traveler,  Pietro  della  Valle,  in  the  beginning  of 
the  seventeenth  century.  For  a  long  time  it  was  doubted 
whether  the  characters  represented  anything  more  than  mere 
ornamentation,  and  it  was  not  until  the  close  of  the  last  century, 
after  more  accurate  copies  of  the  Persepolitan  characters  had 
been  furnished  through  Carsten  Niebuhr,  that  scholars  began 
to  apply  themselves  to  their  decipherment.  Through  the 
efforts  chiefly  of  Gerhard  Tychsen,  professor  at  Bostock, 
Frederick  Miinter,  a  Danish  scholar,  and  the  distinguished 
Silvestre  de  Sacy  of  Paris,  the  beginnings  were  made  which 
finally  led  to  the  discovery  of  the  key  to  the  mysterious  writings, 


16  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION 

in  1802,  by  Georg  Friedrich  Grotefend,  a  teacher  at  a  public 
school  in  Gottingen.  The  observation  was  made  previous 
to  the  days  of  Grotefend  that  the  inscriptions  at  Persepolis 
invariably  showed  three  styles  of  writing.  While  in  all  three 
the  characters  were  composed  of  wedges,  yet  the  combination 
of  wedges,  as  well  as  their  shape,  differed  sufficiently  to  make 
it  evident,  even  to  the  superficial  observer,  that  there  was  as 
much  difference  between  them  as,  say,  between  the  English 
and  the  German  script.  The  conclusion  was  drawn  that  the 
three  styles  represented  three  languages,  and  this  conclusion 
was  strikingly  confirmed  when,  upon  the  arrival  of  Botta's  finds 
in  Europe,  it  was  seen  that  one  of  the  styles  corresponded  to 
the  inscriptions  found  at  Khorsabad  ;  and  so  in  all  subsequent 
discoveries  in  Mesopotamia,  this  was  found  to  be  the  case. 
One  of  the  languages,  therefore,  on  the  monuments  of  Persepolis 
was  presumably  identical  with  the  speech  of  ancient  Mesopo- 
tamia. Grotefend's  key  to  the  reading  of  that  style  of  cunei- 
form writing  which  invariably  occupied  the  first  place  when 
the  three  styles  were  ranged  one  under  the  other,  or  occupied 
the  most  prominent  place  when  a  different  arrangement  was 
adopted,  met  with  universal  acceptance.  He  determined  that 
the  language  of  the  style  which,  for  the  sake  of  convenience,  we 
may  designate  as  No.  1,  was  Old  Persian, — the  language  spoken 
by  the  rulers,  who,  it  was  known  through  tradition  and  notices 
in  classical  writers,  had  erected  the  series  of  edifices  at  Persep- 
olis, one  of  the  capitols  of  the  Old  Persian  or,  as  it  is  also  called, 
the  Achaemenian  empire.  By  the  year  1840  the  decipherment 
of  these  Achaemenian  inscriptions  was  practically  complete,  the 
inscriptions  had  been  read,  the  alphabet  was  definitely  settled, 
and  the  grammar,  in  all  but  minor  points,  known.  It  was 
possible,  therefore,  in  approaching  the  Mesopotamian  style  of 
cuneiform,  which,  as  occupying  the  third  place,  may  be  desig- 
nated as  No.  3,  to  use  No.  1  as  a  guide,  since  it  was  only 
legitimate  to  conclude  that  Nos.  2  and  3   represented  transla- 


SOURCES  AND   METHODS   OE  STUDY.  17 

tions  of  No.  i  into  two  languages,  which,  by  the  side  of  Old 
Persian,  were  spoken  by  the  subjects  of  the  Achaemenian  kings. 
That  one  of  these  languages  should  have  been  the  current 
speech  of  Mesopotamia  was  exactly  what  was  to  be  expected, 
since  Babylonia  and  Assyria  formed  an  essential  part  of  the 
Persian  empire. 

The  beginning  was  made  with  proper  names,  the  sound  of 
which  would  necessarily  be  the  same  or  very  similar  in  both, 
or,  for  that  matter,  in  all  the  three  languages  of  the  Persepolitan 
inscriptions.1  In  this  way,  by  careful  comparisons  between  the 
two  styles,  Nos.  i  and  3,  it  was  possible  to  pick  out  the  signs 
in  No.  3  that  corresponded  to  those  in  No.  1,  and  inasmuch  as 
the  same  sign  occurred  in  various  names,  it  was,  furthermore, 
possible  to  assign,  at  least  tentatively,  certain  values  to  the 
signs  in  question.  With  the  help  of  the  signs  thus  determined, 
the  attempt  was  made  to  read  other  words  in  style  No.  3,  in 
which  these  signs  occurred,  but  it  was  some  time  before  satis- 
factory results  were  obtained.  An  important  advance  was  made 
when  it  was  once  determined,  that  the  writing  was  a  mixture  of 
signs  used  both  as  words  and  as  syllables,  and  that  the  language 
on  the  Assyrian  monuments  belonged  to  the  group  known  as 
Semitic.  The  cognate  languages  —  chiefly  Hebrew  and  Arabic 
—  formed  a  help  towards  determining  the  meaning  of  the  words 
read  and  an  explanation  of  the  morphological  features  they 
presented.  For  all  that,  the  task  was  one  of  stupendous 
proportions,  and  many  were  the  obstacles  that  had  to  be 
overcome,  before  the  principles  underlying  the  cuneiform  writing 
were  determined,  and  the  decipherment  placed  on  a  firm  and 
scientific  basis.  This  is  not  the  place  to  enter  upon  a  detailed 
illustration   of   the  method  adopted   by  ingenious  scholars,  — 

1  Besides  those  at  Persepolis,  a  large  tri-lingual  inscription  was  found  at  Behistun, 
near  the  city  of  Kirmenshah,  in  Persia,  which,  containing  some  ninety  proper  names, 
enabled  Sir  Henry  Rawlinson  definitely  to  establish  a  basis  for  the  decipherment  of 
the  Mesopotamian  inscriptions. 


IS  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

notably  Edward  Hincks,  Isidor  Lowenstern,  Henry  Rawlinson, 
Jules  Oppert,  —  to  whose  united  efforts  the  solution  of  the 
great  problems  involved  is  due  ; 1  and  it  would  also  take  too 
much  space,  since  in  order  to  make  this  method  clear,  it  would 
be  necessary  to  set  forth  the  key  discovered  by  Grotefend  for 
reading  the  Old  Persian  inscriptions.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  the 
guarantee  for  the  soundness  of  the  conclusions  reached  by 
scholars  is  furnished  by  the  consideration,  that  it  was  from 
small  and  most  modest  beginnings  that  the  decipherment 
began.  Step  by  step,  the  problem  was  advanced  by  dint  of  a 
painstaking  labor,  the  degree  of  which  cannot  easily  be  exag- 
gerated, until  to-day  the  grammar  of  the  Babylonian- Assyrian 
language  has  been  clearly  set  forth  in  all  its  essential  particulars  : 
the  substantive  and  verb  formation  is  as  definitely  known 
as  that  of  any  other  Semitic  language,  the  general  principles 
of  the  syntax,  as  well  as  many  detailed  points,  have  been 
carefully  investigated,  and  as  for  the  reading  of  the  cuneiform 
texts,  thanks  to  the  various  helps  at  our  disposal,  and  the 
further  elucidation  of  the  various  principles  that  the  Babylonians 
themselves  adopted  as  a  guide,  the  instance  is  a  rare  one  when 
scholars  need  to  confess  their  ignorance  in  this  particular.  At 
most  there  may  be  a  halting  between  two  possibilities.  The 
difficulties  that  still  hinder  the  complete  understanding  of 
passages  in  texts,  arise  in  part  from  the  mutilated  condition  in 
which,  unfortunately,  so  many  of  the  tablets  and  cylinders  are 
found,  and  in  part  from  a  still  imperfect  knowledge  of  the 
lexicography  of    the   language.      For  many  a   word   occurring 

1  The  best  account  is  to  be  found  in  Hommel's  Geschichte  Babyloniens  und 
Assyriens,  pp.  58-134.  A  briefer  statement  was  furnished  by  Professor  Fr.  Delitzsch 
in  his  supplements  to  the  German  translation  of  George  Smith's  Chaldaean  Genesis 
(Chald'dische  Genesis,  pp.  257-262).  A  tolerably  satisfactory  account  in  English 
is  furnished  bj  B.  T.  A.  Evetts  in  his  work.  New  Light  on  the  Bible  and  the  Holy 
Land,  pp.  79-129.  For  a  full  account  of  the  excavations  and  the  decipherment, 
together  with  a  summary  of  results  and  specimens  of  the  various  branches  of  the 
Babylonian-Assyrian  literature,  the  reader  may  be  referred  to  Kaulen's  Assyrien  und 
Babylonien  nach  den  neuesti  n  Entdeekungen  (5th  edition). 


SOURCES   AND   METHODS   OE  STUDY.  19 

only  once  or  twice,  and  for  which  neither  text  nor  comparison 
with  cognate  languages  offers  a  satisfactory  clue,  ignorance 
must  be  confessed,  or  at  best,  a  conjecture  hazarded,  until 
its  more  frequent  occurrence  enables  us  to  settle  the  question 
at  issue.  Such  settlements  of  disputed  questions  are  taking 
place  all  the  time  ;  and  with  the  activity  with  which  the  study 
of  the  language  and  antiquities  of  Mesopotamia  is  being 
pushed  by  scholars  in  this  country,  in  England,  France,  Austria, 
Germany,  Italy,  Norway,  and  Russia,  and  with  the  constant 
accession  of  new  material  through  excavations  and  publications, 
there  is  no  reason  to  despair  of  clearing  up  the  obscurities, 
still  remaining  in  the  precious  texts  that  a  fortunate  chance  has 
preserved  for  us. 

IV. 

A  question  that  still  remains  to  be  considered  as  to  the  ori- 
gin of  the  cuneiform  writing  of  Mesopotamia,  may  properly  be 
introduced  in  connection  with  this  account  of  the  excavations 
and  decipherment,  though  it  is  needless  to  enter  into  it  in 
detail. 

The  "  Persian  "  style  of  wedge-writing  is  a  direct  derivative 
of  the  Babylonian,  introduced  in  the  times  of  the  Achaemenians, 
and  it  is  nothing  but  a  simplification  in  form  and  principle  of 
the  more  cumbersome  and  complicated  Babylonian.  Instead 
of  a  combination  of  as  many  as  ten  and  fifteen  wedges  to  make 
one  sign,  we  have  in  the  Persian  never  more  than  five,  and 
frequently  only  three;  and  instead  of  writing  words  by  sylla- 
bles, sounds  alone  were  employed,  and  the  syllabary  of  several 
hundred  signs  reduced  to  forty-two,  while  the  ideographic  style 
was  practically  abolished. 

The  second  style  of  cuneiform,  generally  known  as  Median  or 
Susian,1  is  again  only  a  slight  modification  of  the  "  Persian." 

1  The  most  recent  investigations  show  it  to  have  been  a  '  Turanian  '  language.  See 
Weissbach,  Achdmeniden  Inschriften  zweiter  Art,  Leipzig.  1S93. 


20  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Besides  these  three,  there  is  a  fourth  language  (spoken  in  the 
northwestern  district  of  Mesopotamia  between  the  Euphrates 
and  the  Orontes),  known  as  "Mitanni,"  the  exact  status  of 
which  has  not  been  clearly  ascertained,  but  which  has  been 
adapted  to  cuneiform  characters.  A  fifth  variety,  found  on 
tablets  from  Cappadocia,  represents  again  a  modification  of  the 
ordinary  writing  met  with  in  Babylonia.  In  the  inscriptions 
of  Mitanni,  the  writing  is  a  mixture  of  ideographs  and  syllables, 
just  as  in  Mesopotamia,  while  the  so-called  "  Cappadocian  " 
tablets  are  written  in  a  corrrupt  Babylonian,  corresponding  in 
degree  to  the  "corrupt"  forms  that  the  signs  take  on.  In 
Mesopotamia  itself,  quite  a  number  of  styles  exist,  some  due  to 
local  influences,  others  the  result  of  changes  that  took  place 
in  the  course  of  time.  In  the  oldest  period  known,  that  is 
from  4000  to  3000  B.C.,  the  writing  is  linear  rather  than  wedge- 
shaped.  The  linear  writing  is  the  modification  that  the  original 
pictures  underwent  in  being  adapted  for  engraving  on  stone; 
the  wedges  are  the  modification  natural  to  the  use  of  clay. 
though  when  once  the  wedges  became  the  standard  method, 
the  greater  frequency  with  which  clay  as  against  stone  came 
to  be  used,  led  to  an  imitation  of  the  wedges  by  those  who 
cut  out  the  characters  on  stone.  In  consequence,  there 
developed  two  varieties  of  wedge-writing  :  the  one  that  may 
be  termed  lapidary,  used  for  the  stone  inscriptions,  the  official 
historical  records,  and  such  legal  documents  as  were  prepared 
with  especial  care  ;  the  other  cursive,  occurring  only  on  legal 
and  commercial  clay  tablets,  and  becoming  more  frequent  as 
we  approach  the  latest  period  of  Babylonian  writing,  which 
extends  to  within  a  few  decades  of  our  era.  In  Assyria. 
finally,  a  special  variety  of  cuneiform  developed  that  is  easily 
distinguished  from  tlu-  Babylonian  by  its  greater  neatness  and 
the  more  vertical  position  of  the  wedges. 

The  origin  of  all  the  styles  and  varieties  of  cuneiform  writing 
is,  therefore,  to  be  sought  in  Mesopotamia;  and  within   Meso- 


SOURCES   AND   METHODS    OF  STUDY.  21 

potamia,  in  that  part  of  it  where  culture  begins  —  the  extreme 
south;  but  beyond  saying  that  the  writing  is  a  direct  develop- 
ment from  picture  writing,  there  is  little  of  any  definite  charac- 
ter that  can  be  maintained.  We  do  not  know  when  the 
writing  originated,  we  only  know  that  in  the  oldest  inscriptions 
it  is  already  fully  developed. 

We  do  not  know  who  originated  it;  nor  can  the  question  be  as 
yet  definitely  answered,  whether  those  who  originated  it  spoke 
the  Babylonian  language,  or  whether  they  were  Semites  at  all. 
Until  about  fifteen  years  ago,  it  was  generally  supposed  that 
the  cuneiform  writing  was  without  doubt  the  invention  of  a 
non-Semitic  race  inhabiting  Babylonia  at  an  early  age,  from 
whom  the  Semitic  Babylonians  adopted  it,  together  with  the 
culture  that  this  non-Semitic  race  had  produced.  These  in- 
ventors, called  Sumerians  by  some  and  Akkadians  by  others, 
and  Sumero-Akkadians  by  a  third  group  of  scholars,  it  was 
supposed,  used  the  "  cuneiform  "  as  a  picture  or  '  ideographic ' 
script  exclusively  ;  and  the  language  they  spoke  being  aggluti- 
native and  largely  monosyllabic  in  character,  it  was  possible  for 
them  to  stop  short  at  this  point  of  development.  The  Babylo- 
nians however,  in  order  to  adapt  the  writing  to  their  language, 
did  not  content  themselves  with  the  '  picture  '  method,  but 
using  the  non-Semitic  equivalent  for  their  own  words,  employed 
the  former  as  syllables,  while  retaining,  at  the  same  time,  the 
sign  as  an  ideograph.  To  make  this  clearer  by  an  example, 
the  numeral  '  I '  would  represent  the  word  '  one  '  in  their  own 
language,  while  the  non-Semitic  word  for  'one,'  which  let  us 
suppose  was  "as//,"  they  used  as  the  phonetic  value  of  the 
sign,  in  writing  a  word  in  which  this  sound  occurred,  as  e.g., 
ash-es.  Since  each  sign,  in  Sumero-Akkadian  as  well  as  in 
Babylonian,  represented  some  general  idea,  it  could  stand  for 
an  entire  series  of  words,  grouped  about  this  idea  and  associ- 
ated with  it,  'day,'  for  example,  being  used  for  'light,'  'bril- 
liancy,'  '  pure,'   and    so   forth.      The   variety  of  syllabic   and 


22  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION 

ideographic  values  which  the  cuneiform  characters  show  could 
thus  be  accounted  for. 

This  theory,  however,  tempting  as  it  is  by  its  simplicity, 
cannot  be  accepted  in  this  unqualified  form.  Advancing 
knowledge  has  made  it  certain  that  the  ancient  civilization, 
including  the  religion,  is  Semitic  in  character.  The  assump- 
tion therefore  of  a  purely  non-Semitic  culture  for  southern 
Babylonia  is  untenable.  Secondly,  even  in  the  oldest  inscrip- 
tions found,  there  occur  Semitic  words  and  Semitic  constructions 
which  prove  that  the  inscriptions  were  composed  by  Semites.  As 
long,  therefore,  as  no  traces  of  purely  non-Semitic  inscription 
are  found,  we  cannot  go  beyond  the  Semites  in  seeking  for  the 
origin  of  the  culture  in  this  region.  In  view  of  this,  the  theory 
fust  advanced  by  Prof.  Joseph  Hale'vy  of  Paris,  and  now  sup- 
ported by  the  most  eminent  of  German  Assyriologists,  Prof. 
Friedrich  Delitzsch,  which  claims  that  the  cuneiform  writing  is 
Semitic  in  origin,  needs  to  be  most  carefully  considered.  There 
is  much  that  speaks  in  favor  of  this  theory,  much  that  may  more 
easily  be  accounted  for  by  it,  than  by  the  opposite  one,  which  was 
originally  proposed  by  the  distinguished  Nestor  of  cuneiform 
studies,  Jules  Oppert,  and  which  is  with  some  modifications 
still  held  by  the  majority  of  scholars.1  The  question  is  one  which 
cannot  be  answered  by  an  appeal  to  philology  alone.  This  is 
the  fundamental  error  of  the  advocates  of  the  Sumero-Akka- 
dian  theory,  who  appear  to  overlook  the  fact  that  the  testimony 
of  archaeological  and  anthropological  research  must  be  confirm- 
atory of  a  philological  hypothesis  before  it  can  be  accepted  as 
an  indisputable  fact.2  The  time  however  has  not  yet  come  for 
these  two  sciences  to  pronounce  their  verdict  definitely,  though 
it  may  be  added  that  the  supposition  of  a  variety  of  races  once 

1  Besides  Delitzsch,  however,  there  are  others,  as  Pognon,  Jager,  Guyard,  McCurdy 
ml  Brinton,  who  side  with  Halevy. 

-  See  now  Dr.  Brinton's  paper,  "  The  Protohistoric  Ethnography  of  Western  Asia  " 
{Proceed.  Amer.  Philos.  Soc,  i  S95),  especially  pp.  1S-22. 


SOURCES   AND   METHODS   OE  STUDY.  23 

inhabiting  Southern  Mesopotamia  finds  support  in  what  we 
know  from  the  pre-historic  researches  of  anthropologists. 
Again,  it  is  not  to  be  denied  that  the  theory  of  the  Semitic 
origin  of  the  cuneiform  writing  encounters  obstacles  that  cannot 
easily  be  set  aside.  While  it  seeks  to  explain  the  syllabic  values 
of  the  signs  on  the  general  principle  that  they  represent  ele- 
ments of  Babylonian  words,  truncated  in  this  fashion  in  order 
to  answer  to  the  growing  need  for  phonetic  writing  of  words 
for  which  no  ideographs  existed,  it  is  difficult  to  imagine,  as 
Halevy's  theory  demands,  that  the  "  ideographic  "  style,  as 
found  chiefly  in  religious  texts,  is  the  deliberate  invention  of 
priests  in  their  desire  to  produce  a  method  of  conveying  their 
ideas  that  would  be  regarded  as  a  mystery  by  the  laity,  and 
be  successfully  concealed  from  the  latter.  Here  again  the 
theory  borders  on  the  domain  of  archaeology,  and  philology 
alone  will  not  help  us  out  of  the  difficulty.  An  impartial 
verdict  of  the  present  state  of  the  problem  might  be  summed 
up  as  follows: 

i.  It  is  generally  admitted  that  all  the  literature  of 
Babylonia,  including  the  oldest  and  even  that  written  in 
the  "  ideographic "  style,  whether  we  term  it  "  Sumero- 
Akkadian"  or  "  hieratic,"  is  the  work  of  the  Semitic  settlers 
of  Mesopotamia. 

2.  The  culture,  including  the  religion  of  Babylonia,  is  like- 
wise a  Semitic  production,  and  since  Assyria  received  its  cul- 
ture from  Babylonia,  the  same  remark  holds  good  for  entire 
Mesopotamia. 

3.  The  cuneiform  syllabary  is  largely  Semitic  in  character. 
The  ideas  expressed  by  the  ideographic  values  of  the  signs 
give  no  evidence  of  having  been  produced  in  non-Semitic 
surroundings  ;  and,  whatever  the  origin  of  the  system  may  be, 
it  has  been  so  shaped  by  the  Babylonians,  so  thoroughly 
adapted  to  their  purposes,  that  it  is  to  all  practical  purposes 
Semitic. 


24  /■'.  / B  )  7  ( W/AN-ASS )  MAN    REL IGION. 

4.  Approached  from  the  theoretical  side,  there  remains, 
after  making  full  allowance  for  the  Semitic  elements  in  the 
system,  a  residuum  that  has  not  yet  found  a  satisfactory  explan- 
ation, either  by  those  who  favor  the  non-Semitic  theory  or  by 
those  who  hold  the  opposite  view. 

5.  Pending  further  light  to  be  thrown  upon  this  question, 
through  the  expected  additions  to  our  knowledge  of  the  archae- 
ology and  of  the  anthropological  conditions  of  ancient  pre- 
historic Mesopotamia,  philological  research  must  content  itself 
with  an  acknowledgment  of  its  inability  to  reach  a  conclusion 
that  will  appeal  so  forcibly  to  all  minds,  as  to  place  the  solution 
of  the  problem  beyond  dispute. 

6.  There  is  a  presumption  in  favor  of  assuming  a  mixture 
of  races  in  Southern  Mesopotamia  at  an  early  day,  and  a 
possibility,  therefore,  that  the  earliest  form  of  picture  writing 
in  this  region,  from  which  the  Babylonian  cuneiform  is  derived, 
may  have  been  used  by  a  non-Semitic  population,  and  that 
traces  of  this  are  still  apparent  in  the  developed  system  after 
the  important  step  had  been  taken,  marked  by  the  advance  from 
picture  to  phonetic  writing. 

The  important  consideration  for  our  purpose  is.  that  the 
religious  conceptions  and  practices  as  they  are  reflected  in  the 
literary  sources  now  at  our  command,  are  distinctly  Babylonian. 
With  this  we  may  rest  content,  and,  leaving  theories  aside. 
there  will  be  no  necessity  in  an  exposition  of  the  religion  of 
the  Babylonians  and  Assyrians  to  differentiate  or  to  attempt 
to  differentiate  between  Semitic  and  so-called  non- Semitic 
elements.  Local  conditions  and  the  long  period  covered 
by  the  development  and  history  of  the  religion  in  question, 
are  the  factors  that  suffice  to  account  for  the  mixed  and 
in  many  respects  complicated  phenomena  which  this  religion 
presents. 

Having  set  forth  the  sources  at  our  command  for  the  study 
<>l  the  Babylonian- Assyrian  religion,  and  having  indicated  the 


SOURCES  AND   METHODS   OF  STUDY.  25 

manner  in  which  these  sources  have  been  made  available  for 
our  purposes,  we  are  prepared  to  take  the  next  step  that  will 
fit  us  for  an  understanding  of  the  religious  practices  that 
prevailed  in  Mesopotamia,  —  a  consideration  of  the  land  and 
of  its  people,  together  with  a  general  account  of  the  history  of 
the  latter. 


CHAPTER    IT. 
THE    LAND    AND    THE    PEOPLE. 

I. 

The  Babylonians  and  Assyrians  with  whom  we  are  con- 
cerned in  this  volume  dwelt  in  the  region  embraced  by  the 
Euphrates  and  the  Tigris,  —  the  Babylonians  in  the  south,  or 
the  Euphrates  Valley,  the  Assyrians  to  the  northeast,  in  the 
region  extending  from  the  Tigris  into  the  Kurdish  Mountain 
districts;  while  the  northwestern  part  of  Mesopotamia  —  the 
northern  half  of  the  Euphrates  district  —  was  the  seat  of  various 
empires  that  were  alternately  the  rivals  and  the  subjects  of 
either  Babylonia  or  Assyria. 

The  entire  length  of  Babylonia  was  about  300  miles  ;  the 
greatest  breadth  about  125  miles.  The  entire  surface  area 
was  some  23,000  square  miles,  or  about  the  size  of  West 
Virginia.  The  area  of  Assyria,  with  a  length  of  350  miles  and 
a  breadth  varying  from  170  to  300  miles,  covered  75,000  square 
miles,  which  would  make  it  somewhat  smaller  than  the  state  of 
Nebraska.  In  the  strict  sense,  the  term  Mesopotamia  should 
be  limited  to  the  territory  lying  between  the  Euphrates  and 
the  Tigris  above  their  junction,  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Baghdad,  and  extending  northwards  to  the  confines  of  the 
Taurus  range  ;  while  the  district  to  the  south  of  Baghdad,  and 
reaching  to  the  Persian  Gulf,  may  more  properly  be  spoken  of 
as  the  Euphrates  Valley  ;  and  a  third  division  is  represented 
by  the  territory  to  the  east  of  the  Tigris,  from  Baghdad,  and 
up  to  the  Kurdish  Mountains  ;  but  while  this  distinction  is  one 
that  may  be  justly  maintained,  in  view  of  the  different  charac- 
ter that  the  southern  valley  presents  from  the  northern   plain. 


THE  L AMD   AND    THE   PEOPLE.  27 

it  has  become  so  customary,  in  popular  parlance,  to  think  of  the 
entire  territory  along  and  between  the  Euphrates  and  Tigris  as 
one  country,  that  the  term  Mesopotamia  in  this  broad  sense 
may  be  retained,  with  the  division  suggested  by  George  Raw- 
linson,  into  Upper  and  Lower  Mesopotamia.  The  two  streams, 
as  they  form  the  salient  traits  of  the  region,  are  the  factors 
that  condition  the  character  of  the  inhabitants  and  the  culture 
that  once  flourished  there.  The  Euphrates,  or,  to  give  the 
more  correct  pronunciation,  Purat,  signifies  the  '  river '  par 
excellence.  It  is  a  quiet  stream,  flowing  along  in  majestic 
dignity  almost  from  its  source,  in  the  Armenian  mountains, 
not  far  from  the  town  of  Erzerum,  until  it  is  joined  by  the 
Tigris  in  the  extreme  south.  As  the  Shatt-el  Arab,  i.e.,  Arabic 
River,  the  two  reach  the  Persian  Gulf.  Receiving  many 
tributaries  as  long  as  it  remains  in  the  mountains,  it  flows 
first  in  a  westerly  direction,  as  though  making  direct  for  the 
Mediterranean  Sea,  then,  veering  suddenly  to  the  southeast,  it 
receives  but  few  tributaries  after  it  once  passes  through  the 
Taurus  range  into  the  plain,  —  on  the  right  side,  only  the 
Sadschur,  on  the  left  the  Balichus  and  the  Khabur.  From 
this  point  on  for  the  remaining  distance  of  800  miles,  so  far 
from  receiving  fresh  accessions,  it  loses  in  quantity  through 
the  marsh  beds  that  form  on  both  sides.  When  it  reaches  the 
alluvial  soil  of  Babylonia  proper,  its  current  and  also  its 
depth  are  considerably  diminished  through  the  numerous 
canals  that  form  an  outlet  for  its  waters.  Of  its  entire  length, 
1780  miles,  it  is  navigable  only  for  a  small  distance,  cataracts 
forming  a  hindrance  in  its  northern  course  and  sandbanks  in 
the  south.  In  consequence,  it  never  became  at  any  time  an 
important  avenue  for  commerce  ;  and  besides  rafts,  which  could 
be  floated  down  to  a  certain  distance,  the  only  means  of  com- 
munication ever  used  were  wicker  baskets  coated  within  and 
without  with  bitumen,  or  some  form  of  a  primitive  ferry  for 
passing  from  one  shore  to  another. 


28  BABYLONIAA    ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

An  entirely  different  stream  is  the  Tigris  —  a  corrupted  form 
of  '  Idiklat."  It  is  only  1 146  miles  in  length,  and  is  marked,  as 
the  native  name  indicates,  by  the  '  swiftness'  of  its  flow.  Start- 
ing, like  the  Euphrates,  in  the  rugged  regions  of  Armenia, 
it  continues  its  course  through  mountain  clefts  for  a  longer 
period,  and  joined  at  frequent  intervals  by  tributaries,  both 
before  it  merges  into  the  plain  and  after  doing  so,  the  volume 
of  its  waters  is  steadily  increased.  Even  when  it  approaches 
the  alluvial  soil  of  the  south,  it  does  not  lose  its  character  until 
well  advanced  in  its  course  to  the  gulf.  Advancing  towards 
the  Euphrates  and  again  receding  from  it,  it  at  last  joins  the 
latter  at  Korna,  and  together  they  pour  their  waters  through 
the  Persian  Gulf  into  the  great  ocean.  It  is  navigable  from 
Diabekr  in  the  north,  for  its  entire  length.  Large  rafts  may 
be  floated  down  from  Mosul  to  Baghdad  and  Basra,  and  even 
small  steamers  have  ascended  as  far  north  as  Nimrud.  The 
Tigris,  then,  in  contrast  to  the  Euphrates,  is  the  avenue  of 
commerce  for  Mesopotamia,  forming  the  connecting  bond 
between  it  and  the  rest  of  the  ancient  world,  —  Egypt,  Indin, 
and  the  lands  of  the  Mediterranean.  Owing,  however,  to  the 
imperfect  character  of  the  means  of  transportation  in  ancient 
and,  for  that  matter,  in  modern  times,  the  voyage  up  the  stream 
was  impracticable.  The  rafts,  resting  on  inflated  bags  of  goat 
or  sheep  skin,  can  make  no  headway  against  the  rapid  stream, 
and  so,  upon  reaching  Baghdad  or  Basra,  they  are  broken  up, 
and  the  bags  sent  back  by  the  shore  route  to  the  north. 

The  contrast  presented  by  the  two  rivers  is  paralleled  by  the 
traits  "distinguishing  Upper  from  Lower  Mesopotamia.  Shut 
off  to  the  north  and  northeast  by  the  Armenian  range,  to 
the  northwest  by  the  Taurus,  Upper  Mesopotamia  retains, 
for  a  considerable  extent,  and  especially  on  the  eastern  side, 
a  rugged  aspect.  The  Kurdish  mountains  run  close,  to  the 
Tigris'  bed  for  some  distance  below  Mosul,  while  between  the 
Tigris  and  the  Euphrates  proper,  small  ranges  and  promontories 


THE   LAND   AN/)    THE   PEOPLE.  29 

stretch  as  far  as  the  end  of  the  Taurus  chain,  well  on  towards 
Mosul. 

Below  Mosul,  the  region  begins  to  change  its  character. 
The  mountains  cease,  the  plain  begins,  the  soil  becomes  alluvial 
and  through  the  regular  overflow  of  the  two  rivers  in  the  rainy 
season,  develops  an  astounding  fertility.  This  overflow  begins, 
in  the  case  of  the  Tigris,  early  in  March,  reaches  its  height  in 
May,  and  ceases  about  the  middle  of  June.  The  overflow  of 
the  Euphrates  extends  from  the  middle  of  March  till  the  begin- 
ning of  June,  but  September  is  reached  before  the  river  resumes 
its  natural  state.  Not  only  does  the  overflow  of  the  Euphrates 
thus  extend  over  a  longer  period,  but  it  oversteps  its  banks  with 
greater  violence  than  does  the  Tigris,  so  that  as  far  north  as  the 
juncture  with  the  Khabur,  and  still  more  so  in  the  south,  the 
country  to  both  sides  is  flooded,  until  it  assumes  the  appear- 
ance of  a  great  sea.  Through  the  violence  of  these  overflows, 
changes  constantly  occur  in  the  course  that  the  river  takes,  so 
that  places  which  in  ancient  times  stood  on  its  banks  are  to-day 
removed  from  the  main  river-bed.  Another  important  change 
in  Southern  Babylonia  is  the  constant  accretion  of  soil,  due  to 
the  deposits  from  the  Persian  Gulf. 

This  increase  proceeding  on  an  average  of  about  one  mile  in 
fifty  years  has  brought  it  about  that  the  two  rivers  to-day, 
instead  of  passing  separately  into  the  Gulf,  unite  at  Korna  — 
some  distance  still  from  the  entrance.  The  contrast  of  seasons 
is  greater,  as  may  be  imagined,  in  Upper  Mesopotamia  than  in 
the  south.  The  winters  are  cold,  with  snowfalls  that  may  last 
for  several  months,  but  with  the  beginning  of  the  dry  season, 
in  May,  a  tropical  heat  sets  in  which  lasts  until  the  beginning 
of  November,  when  the  rain  begins.  Assyria  proper,  that  is, 
the  eastern  side  of  Mesopotamia,  is  more  affected  by  the 
mountain  ranges  than  the  west.  In  the  Euphrates  Valley,  the 
heat  during  the  dry  season,  from  about  May  till  November, 
when   for   weeks,   and   even   months,    no  cloud   is   to  be   seen, 


30  BA  B  )  L  ON  I  A IV- A  S.S )  7?  I A  N  REL IGION. 

beggars  description  ;  but  strange  enough,  the  Arabs  who  dwell 
there  at  present,  while  enduring  the  heat  without  much  dis- 
comfort, are  severely  affected  by  a  winter  temperature  that  for 
Europeans  and  Americans  is  exhilarating  in  its  influence. 

From  what  has  been  said,  it  will  be  clear  that  the  Euphrates 
is,  par  excellence,  the  river  of  Southern  Mesopotamia  or  Baby- 
lonia, while  the  Tigris  may  be  regarded  as  the  river  of  Assyria. 
It  was  the  Euphrates  that  made  possible  the  high  degree  of 
culture,  that  was  reached#  in  the  south.  Through  the  very 
intense  heat  of  the  dry  season,  the  soil  developed  a  fertility 
that  reduced  human  labor  to  a  minimum.  The  return  for 
sowing  of  all  kinds  of  grain,  notably  wheat,  corn,  barley,  is 
calculated,  on  an  average,  to  be  five  hundred-fold,  while  the 
date  palm  flourishes  with  scarcely  any  cultivation  at  all. 
Sustenance  being  thus  provided  for  with  little  effort,  it  needed 
only  a  certain  care  in  protecting  oneself  from  damage  through 
the  too  abundant  overflow,  to  enable  the  population  to  find  that 
ease  of  existence,  which  is  an  indispensable  condition  of  culture. 
This  was  accomplished  by  the  erection  of  dikes,  and  by  direct- 
ing the  waters  through  channels  into  the  fields. 

Assyria,  more  rugged  in  character,  did  not  enjoy  the  same 
advantages.  Its  culture,  therefore,  not  only  arose  at  a  later 
period  than  that  of  Babylonia,  but  was  a  direct  importation 
from  the  south.  It  was  due  to  the  natural  extension  of  the 
civilization  that  continued  for  the  greater  part  of  the  existence 
of  the  two  empires  to  be  central  in  the  south.  But  when  once 
Assyria  was  included  in  the  circle  of  Babylonian  culture,  the 
greater  effort  required  in  forcing  the  natural  resources  of  the 
soil,  produced  a  greater  variety  in  the  return.  Besides  corn, 
wheat  and  rice,  the  olive,  banana  and  fig  tree,  mulberry  and 
vine  were  cultivated,  while  the  vicinity  of  the  mountain  ranges 
furnished  an  abundance  of  building  material  —  wood  and  lime- 
stone—  that  was  lacking  in  the  south.  The  fertility  of  Assyria 
proper,  again,  not  being  dependent  on  the  overflow  of  the  Tigris, 


THE   LAND   AND    THE    PEOPLE.  31 

proved  to  be  of  greater  endurance.  With  the  neglect  of  the 
irrigation  system,  Babylonia  became  a  mere  waste,  and  the 
same  river  that  was  the  cause  of  its  prosperity  became  the  foe 
that,  more  effectually  than  any  human  power,  contributed  to 
the  ruin  and  the  general  desolation  that  marks  the  greater 
part  of  the  Euphrates  Valley  at  the  present  time.  Assyria 
continued  to  play  a  part  in  history  long  after  its  ancient  glory 
had  departed,  and  to  this  day  enjoys  a  far  greater  activity,  and 
is  of  considerable  more  significance  than  the  south. 

II. 

In  so  far  as  natural  surroundings  affect  the  character  of  two 
peoples  belonging  to  the  same  race,  the  Assyrians  present  that 
contrast  to  the  Babylonians  which  one  may  expect  from  the 
differences,  just  set  forth,  between  the  two  districts.  The 
former  were  rugged,  more  warlike,  and  when  they  acquired 
power,  used  it  in  the  perfection  of  their  military  strength ;  the 
latter,  while  not  lacking  in  the  ambition  to  extend  their  dominion, 
yet,  on  the  whole,  presented  a  more  peaceful  aspect  that  led  to 
the  cultivation  of  commerce  and  industrial  arts.  Both,  how- 
ever, have  very  many  more  traits  in  common  than  they  have 
marks  of  distinction.  They  both  belong  not  only  to  the 
Semitic  race,  but  to  the  same  branch  of  the  race.  Present- 
ing the  same  physical  features,  the  languages  spoken  by  them 
are  identical,  barring  differences  that  do  not  always  rise  to 
the  degree  of  dialectical  variations,  and  affect  chiefly  the  pro- 
nunciation of  certain  consonants.  At  what  time  the  Baby- 
lonians and  Assyrians  settled  in  the  district  in  which  we  find 
them,  whence  they  came,  and  whether  the  Euphrates  Valley  or 
the  northern  Tigris  district  was  the  first  to  be  settled,  are 
questions  that  cannot,  in  the  present  state  of  knowledge,  be 
answered.  As  to  the  time  of  their  settlement,  the  high  degree 
of    culture  that   the    Euphrates   Valley  shows   at  the    earliest 


32  BABYLONIAN^ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

period  known  to  us, —  about  4000  B.C., —  and  the  indigenous 
character  of  this  culture,  points  to  very  old  settlement,  and 
makes  it  easier  to  err  on  the  side  of  not  going  back  far  enough, 
than  on  the  side  of  going  too  far.  Again,  while,  as  has  been 
several  times  intimated,  the  culture  in  the  south  is  older  than 
that  of  the  north,  it  does  not  necessarily  follow  that  the  settle- 
ment of  Babylonia  antedates  that  of  Assyria.  The  answer  to 
this  question  would  depend  upon  the  answer  to  the  question 
as  to  the  original  home  of  the  Semites.1  The  probabilities, 
however,  are  in  favor  of  assuming  a  movement  of  population, 
as  of  culture,  from  the  south  to  the  north.  At  all  events, 
the  history  of  Babylonia  and  Assyria  begins  with  the  former, 
and  as  a  consequence  we  are  justified  also  in  beginning  with 
that  phase  of  the  religion  for  which  we  have  the  earliest  records, 
—  the  Babylonian. 

III. 

At  the  very  outset  of  a  brief  survey  of  the  history  of  the 
Babylonians,  a  problem  confronts  us  of  primary  importance. 
Are  there  any  traces  of  other  settlers  besides  the  Semitic 
Babylonians  in  the  earliest  period  of  the  history  of  the  Euphrates 
Valley?  Those  who  cling  to  the  theory  of  a  non-Semitic  origin 
of  the  cuneiform  syllabary  will,  of  course,  be  ready  to  answer 
in  the  affirmative.  Sumerians  and  Akkadians  are  the  names 
given  to  these  non-Semitic  settlers  who  preceded  the  Baby- 
lonians in  the  control  of  the  Euphrates  Valley.  The  names 
are  derived  from  the  terms  Sumer  and  Akkad,  which  are 
frequently  found  in  Babylonian  and  Assyrian  inscriptions,  in 
connection  with  the  titles  of  the  kings.  Unfortunately,  scholars 
are  not  a  unit  in  the  exact  location  of  the  districts  comprised 
by  these  names,  some  declaring  Sumer  to  be  in  the  north  and 

1  I  may  be  permitted  i"  refei  to  a  publication  by  Or.  Brinton  and  myself,  The 
Cradle  of  the  Semite:,  (Philadelphia,  1SS9),  in  which  the  various  views  as  to  this 
home  are  set  forth, 


THE   LAND   AND    THE   PEOPLE.  33 

Akkad  in  the  south ;  others  favoring  the  reverse  position. 
The  balance  of  proof  rests  in  favor  of  the  former  supposition ; 
but  however  that  may  be,  Sumer  and  Akkad  represent,  from 
a  certain  period  on,  a  general  designation  to  include  the  whole 
of  Babylonia.  Professor  Hommel  goes  so  far  as  to  declare 
that  in  the  types  found  on  statues  and  monuments  of  the  oldest 
period  of  Babylonian  history  —  the  monuments  coming  from 
the  mound  Telloh  —  we  have  actual  representations  of  these 
Sumerians,  who  are  thus  made  out  to  be  a  smooth-faced  race 
with  rather  prominent  cheek-bones,  round  faces,  and  shaven 
heads.1  He  pronounces  in  favor  of  the  highlands  lying  to  the 
east  of  Babylonia,  as  the  home  of  the  Sumerians,  whence  they 
made  their  way  into  the  Euphrates  Valley.  Unfortunately,  the 
noses  on  these  old  statues  are  mutilated,  and  with  such  an 
important  feature  missing,  anthropologists,  at  least,  are  unwill- 
ing to  pronounce  definitely  as  to  the  type  represented.  Again, 
together  with  these  supposed  non-Semitic  types,  other  figures 
have  been  found  which,  as  Professor  Hommel  also  admits, 
show  the  ordinary  Semitic  features.  It  would  seem,  therefore, 
that  even  accepting  the  hypothesis  of  a  non-Semitic  type 
existing  in  Babylonia  at  this  time,  the  Semitic  settlers  are 
just  as  old  as  the  supposed  Sumerians  ;  and  since  it  is  admitted 
that  the  language  found  on  these  statues  and  figures  contains 
Semitic  constructions  and  Semitic  words,  it  is,  to  say  the  least, 
hazardous  to  give  the  Sumerians  the  preference  over  the  Semites 
so  far  as  the  period  of  settlement  and  origin  of  the  Euphratean 
culture  is  concerned.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  we  are  not  warranted 
in  going  beyond  the  statement  that  all  evidence  points  in  favor 
of  a  population  of  mixed  races  in  the  Euphrates  Valley  from  the 
earliest  period  known  to  us.  No  positive  proof  is  forthcoming 
that  Sumer  and  Akkad  were  ever  employed  or  understood  in 
any  other  sense  than  as  geographical  terms. 

1  It  has  been  suggested  that  since  the  statues  of  Telloh  are  those  of  the  priest- 
kings,  only  the  priestly  classes  shaved  their  hair  off. 


34  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

This  one  safe  conclusion,  however,  that  the  Semitic  settlers 
of  Babylonia  were  not  the  sole  occupants,  but  by  their  side 
dwelt  another  race,  or  possibly  a  variety  of  races,  possessing 
entirely  different  traits,  is  one  of  considerable  importance.  At 
various  times  the  non-Semitic  hordes  of  Elam  and  the  mountain 
districts  to  the  east  of  babylonia  swept  over  the  valley,  and 
succeeded,  for  a  longer  or  shorter  period,  in  securing  a  firm 
foothold.  The  ease  with  which  these  conquerors  accommodated 
themselves  to  their  surroundings,  continuing  the  form  of  gov- 
ernment which  they  found  there,  making  but  slight  changes  in 
the  religious  practices,  can  best  be  accounted  for  on  the 
supposition  that  the  mixture  of  different  races  in  the  valley 
had  brought  about  an  interchange  and  interlacing  of  traits 
which  resulted  in  the  approach  of  one  type  to  the  other. 
Again,  it  has  recently  been  made  probable  that  as  early  at 
least  as  2000,  or  even  2500  B.C.,  Semitic  invaders  entering 
Babylonia  from  the  side  of  Arabia  drove  the  native  Babylonian 
rulers  from  the  throne  ; *  and  at  a  still  earlier  period  inter- 
course between  Babylonia  and  distant  nations  to  the  northeast 
and  northwest  was  established,  which  left  its  traces  on  the 
political  and  social  conditions.  At  every  point  we  come  across 
evidence  of  this  composite  character  of  Babylonian  culture,  and 
the  question  as  to  the  origin  of  the  latter  may,  after  all,  resolve 
itself  into  the  proposition  that  the  contact  of  different  races 
gave  the  intellectual  impetus  which  is  the  first  condition  of  a 
forward  movement  in  civilization  ;  and  while  it  is  possible  that, 
at  one  stage,  the  greater  share  in  the  movement  falls  to  the 
non-Semitic  contingent,  the  Semites  soon  obtained  the  intel- 
lectual ascendency,  and  so  absorbed  the  non-Semitic  elements 
as  to  give  to  the  culture  resulting  from  the  combination,  the 
homogeneous  character  it  presents  on  the  surface. 

1  See  an  interesting  discussion  <>f  the  question  bj  Professor  Hommel, "  Arabia 
according  to  the  Latest  Discoveries  and  Researches."  —  Sunday  School  Times,  1895, 
nos.  1 1  and  4.7. 


THE   LAND   AND    THE  PEOPLE.  35 

IV. 

Our  present  knowledge  of  Babylonian  history  reaches  back 
to  the  period  of  about  4000  B.C.  At  that  time  we  find  the 
Euphrates  Valley  divided  into  a  series  of  states  or  principali- 
ties, parcelling  North  and  South  Babylonia  between  them. 
These  states  group  themselves  around  certain  cities.  In  fact, 
the  Babylonian  principalities  arise  from  the  extension  of  the 
city's  jurisdiction,  just  as  the  later  Babylonian  empire  is  naught 
but  the  enlargement,  on  a  greater  scale,  of  the  city  of  Babylon. 

Of  these  old  Babylonian  cities  the  most  noteworthy,  in  the 
south,  are  Eridu,  Lagash,1  Ur,  Larsa,  Uruk,'  Isin;  and  in  the 
north,  Agade,  Sippar,  Nippur,  Kutha,  and  Babylon.  The  rulers 
of  these  cities  call  themselves  either  'king'  (literally  "great 
man  ')  or  '  governor,'  according  as  the  position  is  a  purely  in- 
dependent one,  or  one  of  subjection  to  a  more  powerful  chieftain. 
Thus  the  earliest  rulers  of  the  district  of  Lagash,  of  whom  we 
have  inscriptions  (c.  3200  B.C.)  have  the  title  of  'king,'  but  a 
few  centuries  later  Lagash  lost  its  independent  position  and 
its  rulers  became  '  pa'tesis,'  i.e.,  governors.  They  are  in  a 
position  of  vassalage,  as  it  would  appear,  to  the  contempora- 
neous kings  of  Ur,  though  this  does  not  hinder  them  from  en- 
gaging in  military  expeditions  against  Elam,  and  in  extensive 
building  operations.  The  kings  of  Ur,  in  addition  to  their 
title  as  kings  of  Ur,  are  styled  kings  of  Sumer  and  Akkad. 
Whether  at  this  time,  Sumer  and  Akkad  included  the  whole 
of  Babylonia,  or,  as  seems  more  likely,  only  the  southern  part, 
in  either  case,  Lagash  would  fall  under  the  jurisdiction  of 
these  kings,  if  their  title  is  to  be  regarded  as  more  than  an 
empty  boast.  Again,  the  rulers  of  Uruk  are  known  simply  as 
kings  of  that  place,  while  those  of  Isin  incorporate  in  their 
titles,  kingship  over  Ur  as  well  as  Sumer  and  Akkad. 

1  Also  known  as  Shirpurla  which  Jensen  (Keils  Bibl.  3,  1,  5)  thinks  was  the  later 
name. 


36  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIA X   RELIGION 

For  this  early  period,  extending  from  about  4000  B.C.  to 
2300,  the  chronology  is  as  yet  uncertain.  Beyond  the  titles 
of  the  rulers  over  Babylonian  states,  there  are  but  few  safe 
indications  for  determining  the  succession  of  dynasties.  So 
much,  however,  is  now  certain,  —that  simultaneous  with  the 
governors  of  Lagash  and  the  older  kings  of  Ur,  there  was  an 
independent  state  in  Northern  Babylonia  with  its  seat  at  Agade. 
Indeed  the  history  of  this  state  can  now  be  traced  back 
six  centuries  beyond  that  of  Lagash.  Two  rulers  of  Agade, 
Naram-Sin  (V.  3800  B.C.)  and  Sargon  (or  to  give  his  fuller  name, 
Shargani-shar-ali 2),  are  the  earliest  rulers  as  yet  known.  These 
kings  of  Agade  extended  their  jurisdiction  as  far  north,  at 
least,  as  Nippur  on  the  one  side  and  Sippar  on  the  other. 
The  city  of  Babylon  itself,  if  it  existed  at  this  period,  was 
therefore  included  within  the  territory  of  these  kings;  and  it 
follows  that  if  there  existed  rulers  of  Babylon  at  this  time, 
which  is  doubtful  (since  the  city  is  not  mentioned),  they  were 
in  the  same  position  of  dependency  upon  the  rulers  of  Agade 
as  the  '  governors '  of  Lagash  were  upon  some  greater  power. 
It  is  not  until  about  the  middle  of  the  third  millennium  before 
this  era,  that  Babylon  comes  into  prominence. 

In  the  south,  as  already  intimated,  the  rulers  of  Lagash 
and  the  dynasty  of  Ur  are  the  earliest  of  which  we  have  any 
record.  There  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  further  excava- 
tions at  Mugheir  will  bring  to  light  the  names  of  older  kings, 
and  the  presumption  is  in  favor  of  regarding  the  southern 
states,  or  at  least  some  of  them,  earlier  than  any  in  the  north. 
The  climax  in  the  power  of  the  kings  of  Ur,  the  period  when 

1  Sec  Hilprecht,  Old  Babylonian  Inscriptions,  i.  16-18.  Naram-Sin  signifies 
'  beloved  of  the  god  Sin  '  (the  moon-god)  ;  Shargani-shar-ali  —  'the  legitimate  king, 
king  of  the  city.'  The  excavations  of  the  University  of  Pennsylvania  have  cast  new 
light  upon  this  most  ancient  period  of  Babylonian  history.  It  is  now  known  that 
the  temple  of  Bel  ;it  Nippur  antedates  the  reign  of  Naram-Sin,  and  in  the  further 
publications  oi  the  University,  we  may  look  for  material  which  will  enable  us  to  pass 
beyond  the  period  of  Sargon 


THE    LAND   AND    THE   PEOPLE.  37 

they  exerted,  in  fact  as  well  as  in  name,  the  sovereignty  over 
all  Sumer  and  Akkad  may  be  fixed  approximately  at  3000  b.c. 
How  far  we  shall  be  able  to  go  beyond  that,  for  the  beginnings 
of  this  state,  must,  for  the  present,  remain  doubtful,  with  the 
chances  in  favor  of  a  considerably  earlier  date  ;  and  it  may 
be  that  prior  to  Ur  and  Lagash  there  were  dynasties  estab- 
lished elsewhere,  —  at  Eridu,  perhaps,  —  the  existence  of  which 
will  be  revealed  by  future  discoveries.  An  independent  state 
with  its  seat  at  Uruk  follows  upon  the  culminating  period  of  the 
glory  of  Ur,  and  may  be  regarded,  indeed,  as  an  indication  that 
the  rulers  of  Ur  had  lost  their  control  over  the  whole  of  South- 
ern Babylonia.  Isin,  whose  site  has  not  yet  been  determined, 
but  which  lay  probably  to  the  north  of  Uruk,  was  another 
political  center.  Its  rulers,  so  far  as  we  know  them,  curiously 
assign  the  fourth  place  to  the  title  '  king  of  Isin,'  giving  prece- 
dence to  their  control  over  Nippur,  Eridu,  and  Uruk.  We  may 
conclude  from  this,  that  at  the  time  when  Isin  extended  its 
supremacy,  the  greater  luster  attaching  to  the  old  towns  of 
Nippur  and  Uruk,  was  emphasized  by  the  precedence  given 
to  these  centers  over  Isin,  although  the  Isin  kings  are  only 
■  shepherds '  and  '  merciful  lords '  over  Nippur  and  Uruk,  and 
not  kings. 

At  a  subsequent  period,  the  kings  of  Ur  appear  to  have 
regained  the  supremacy,  which  was  wrested  from  them  by  Isin  ; 
and  the  rulers  of  the  latter  acknowledge  their  dependence  upon 
the  kings  of  Ur.  This  so-called  second  dynasty  of  Ur  in- 
cludes Nippur.  The  kings  are  proud  of  calling  themselves  the 
guardians  of  the  temple  of  Bel  in  Nippur,  nominated  to  the 
office  by  the  god  himself,  and  reviving  an  old  title  of  the  kings  of 
Agade,  style  themselves  also  '  king  of  the  four  regions.'  Another 
change  in  the  political  horoscope  is  reflected  in  the  subjection 
of  Ur  to  a  district  whose  center  was  Larsa,  not  far  from  Ur,  and 
represented  by  the  mound  Senkereh.  There  are  two  kings, 
Nur-Ramman  (i.e.,  light  of  Ramman)   and  Sin-iddina  (i.e.,  Sin 


38  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION 

judges),  who  call  themselves  guardians  of  l'r  and  kings  of 
Larsa,  showing  that  the  center  of  this  principality  was  Larsa, 
with  Ur  as  a  dependent  district.  That  these  rulers  take  up 
the  dominion  once  held  by  the  kings  of  Ur  is  further  manifest 
in  the  additional  title  that  they  give  to  themselves,  as  'kings  of 
Sumer  and  Akkad,'  whereas  the  omission  of  the  title  'king  of 
the  four  regions  '  indicates  apparently  the  exclusion  of  Agade 
and  Nippur;  and  with  these,  probably  North  Babylonia  in 
general,  from  their  supremacy.  The  power  of  Larsa  receives 
a  fatal  check  through  the  invasion  of  Babylonia  by  the  Elam- 
ites  (c.  2350  B.C.). 

These  variations  in  official  titles  are  a  reflection  of  the  natu- 
ral rivalry  existing  between  the  various  Babylonian  states,  which 
led  to  frequent  shiftings  in  the  political  situation.  Beyond  this, 
the  inscriptions  of  these  old  Babylonian  rulers,  being  ordinarily 
commemorative  of  the  dedication  to  a  deity,  of  some  temple 
or  other  construction  -  -  notably  canals  —  or  of  some  votive 
offering,  a  cone  or  tablet,  unfortunately  tell  us  little  of  the 
events  of  the  time.  Pending  the  discovery  of  more  complete 
annals,  we  must  content  ourselves  with  the  general  indications 
of  the  civilization  that  prevailed,  and  of  the  relations  in  which 
the  principalities  stood  to  one  another,  and  with  more  or  less 
doubtful  reconstructions  of  the  sequence  in  the  dynasties.  In 
all  of  this  period,  however,  the  division  between  North  and 
South  Babylonia  was  kept  tolerably  distinct,  even  though  oc- 
casionally, and  for  a  certain  period,  a  North  Babylonian  city, 
like  that  of  Agade  and  Nippur,  extended  its  jurisdiction  over 
a  section  bordering  on  the  south  and  vice  versa.  It  remained 
for  a  great  conqueror,  Hammurabi,  the  sixth  king  of  a  dynasty 
having  its  seat  in  the  city  of  Babylon  itself,  who  about  the  year 
2300  B.C.  succeeded  in  uniting  North  and  South  Babylonia 
under  one  rule.  With  him,  therefore,  a  new  epoch  in  the  history 
of  the  Euphrates  Valley  begins.  Henceforth  the  supremacy 
of    the   city   of    Babylon    remains    undisputed,    and    the   other 


THE    LAND   AND    THE    PEOPLE.  39 

ancient  centers,  losing  their  political  importance,  retain  their 
significance  only  by  virtue  of  the  sanctuaries  existing  there, 
to  which  pilgrimages  continued  to  be  made,  and  through  the 
commercial  activity  that,  upon  the  union  of  the  various  Baby- 
lonian districts,  set  in  with  increased  vigor. 

Attention  was  directed  a  few  years  ago  by  Pognon  and  Sayce 
to  the  fact  that  the  name  of  Hammurabi,  as  well  as  of  four 
kings  that  preceded  him,  and  of  a  number  that  followed,  are 
not  Babylonian.  Sayce  expressed  the  opinion  that  they  were 
Arabic,  and  Professor  Hommel  has  recently  reenforced  the 
position  of  Sayce  by  showing  the  close  resemblance  existing 
between  these  names  and  those  found  on  the  monuments  of 
Southern  Arabia.1  While  no  evidence  has  as  yet  been  found 
to  warrant  us  in  carrying  back  the  existence  of  the  Minean 
empire  in  Southern  Arabia  beyond  1500  B.C.,  still  since  at  this 
period,  this  empire  appears  in  a  high  state  of  culture,  with 
commercial  intercourse  established  between  it  and  Egypt,  as 
well  as  Palestine,  the  conclusion  drawn  by  Hommel  that 
Babylonia  was  invaded  about  2500  B.C.  by  an  Arabic-speaking 
people  is  to  be  seriously  considered.  Elam,  as  we  have  seen, 
was  constantly  threatening  Babylonia  from  the  East,  and  shortly 
before  Hammurabi's  appearance,  succeeded  in  putting  an  end 
to  the  dynasty  of  Larsa.  It  now  appears  that  the  inhabitants 
of  the  Euphrates  Valley  were  also  threatened  by  an  enemy 
lodged  somewhere  in  the  southwest.  Though  Hommel's  hypo- 
thesis still  needs  confirmation,  and  may  perhaps  be  somewhat 
modified  by  future  researches,  still  so  much  seems  certain :  that 
the  great  union  of  the  Babylonian  states  and  the  supremacy  of 
the  city  of  Babylon  itself  was  achieved  not  by  Babylonians  but 
by  foreigners  who  entered  Babylonia  from  its  western  (or  south- 
western) side.  The  dynasty  of  which  Hammurabi  is  the  chief 
representative  comes  to  an  end  c.  2 1 00,  and  is  followed  by  an- 

1  Sunday  School  Times,  1895,  no.  41. 


in  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION 

other  known  ;i.s  Shish-Kha,1  whose  rulers  likewise  appear  to  be 
foreigners;  and  when  this  dynasty  finally  disappears  alter  a 
rule  of  almost  lour  centuries,  Babylonia  is  onee  more  con- 
quered by  a  people  coming  from  the  northern  parts  of  Elam 
and  who  are  known  as  the  Cassites.'2  These  Cassites,  of  whose 
origin,  character,  and  language  but  little  is  known  as  yet,  ruled 
over  Babylonia  for  a  period  of  no  less  than  576  years;  but 
adapting  themselves  to  the  customs  and  religion  of  the  country, 
their  presence  did  not  interfere  with  the  normal  progress  of 
culture  in  the  Euphrates  Valley.  We  may  therefore  embrace 
the  period  of  Hammurabi  and  his  successors,  down  through 
the  rule  of  the  Cassite  kings,  under  one  head.  It  is  a  period 
marked  by  the  steady  growth  of  culture,  manifesting  itself  in 
the  erection  of  temples,  in  the  construction  of  canals,  and  in  the 
expansion  of  commerce.  Active  relationships  were  maintained 
between  Babylonia  and  distant  Egypt. 

This  movement  did  not  suffer  an  interruption  through  the 
invasion  of  the  Cassites.  Though  Nippur,  rather  than  Babylon, 
appears  to  have  been  the  favorite  city  of  the  dynasty,  the  course 
of  civilization  flows  on  uninterruptedly,  and  it  is  not  until  the 
growing  complications  between  Babylonia  and  Assyria,  due  to 
the  steady  encroachment  on  the  part  of  the  latter,  that  decided 
changes  begin  to  take  place. 

About  1500  B.C.  the  first  traces  of  relationship  between 
Babylonia  and  the  northern  Mesopotamian  power,  Assyria, 
appear.  These  relations  were  at  first  of  a  friendly  character, 
but  it  is  not  long  before  the  growing  strength  of  Assyria 
becomes  a  serious  menace  to  Babylonia.  In  the  middle  of 
the  thirteenth  century,  Assyrian  arms  advance  upon  the  city  of 
Babylon.      For  some  decades,  Babylon  remains  in  subjection  to 

1  For  various  views  regarding  tin-  name  and  character  of  tins  dynasty  see  W'inck- 
ler,  Geschichte,  pp.  67,  68,  32S  ;  Hilprecht,  Assyriaca,  pp.  25-28,  102, 103  ;  Winckler, 
Altorientalische  Forschungen,  iii.  275-277,  and  Roger,  Outlines,  32,  note. 

-  Sec  Delitzsch,  Die  Sprache  >hr  Kossaet. 


THE   LAND   AND    THE   PEOPLE.  41 

Assyria,  and  although  she  regains  her  independence  once 
more,  and  even  a  fair  measure  of  her  former  glory,  the  power 
of  the  Cassites  is  broken.  Internal  dissensions  add  to  the 
difficulties  of  the  situation  and  lead  to  the  overthrow  of  the 
Cassites  (1151  b.c).  Native  Babylonians  once  more  occupy 
the  throne,  who,  although  able  to  check  the  danger  still  threat- 
ening from  Elam,  cannot  resist  the  strong  arms  of  Assyria. 
At  the  close  of  the  twelfth  century  Tiglathpileser  I.  secures  a 
firm  hold  upon  Babylonia,  which  now  sinks  to  the  position  of  a 
dependency  upon  the  Assyrian  kings. 


V. 

In  contrast  to  Babylonia,  which  is  from  the  start  stamped 
as  a  civilizing  power,  Assyria,  from  its  rise  till  its  fall,  is 
essentially  a  military  empire,  seeking  the  fulfillment  of  its 
mission  in  the  enlargement  of  power  and  in  incessant  warfare. 
Its  history  may  be  traced  back  to  about  1800-  B.C.,  when  its 
rulers,  with  their  seat  in  the  ancient  city  of  Ashur,  first  begin 
to  make  their  presence  felt.  The  extension  of  their  power  pro- 
ceeds, as  in  Babylonia,  from  the  growing  importance  of  the 
central  city,  and  soon  embraces  all  of  Assyria  proper.  They 
pass  on  into  the  mountain  regions  to  the  east,  and  advanc- 
ing to  the  west,  they  encounter  the  vigorous  forces  of  Egypt, 
whose  Asiatic  campaigns  begin  about  the  same  time  as  the 
rise  of  Assyria.  The  Egyptians,  abetted  by  the  Hittites  —  the 
possessors  of  the  strongholds  on  the  Orontes  —  successfully 
check  the  growth  of  Assyria  on  this  side,  at  least  for  a  period 
of  several  centuries.  In  the  meanwhile,  the  Assyrian  king 
gathers  strength  enough  to  make  an  attack  upon  Babylonia. 

The  conflict,  once  begun,  continues,  as  has  been  indicated, 
with  varying  fortunes.  Occasional  breathing  spells  are  brought 
about  by  a  temporary  agreement  of  peace  between  the  two 
empires,    until    at    the    end    of    the    twelfth   century,    Assyria, 


42  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN    RELIGION. 

under  Tiglathpileser  J.,  secures  control  over  the  Babylonian 
empire.  Her  kings  add  to  their  long  list  of  titles  that  of 
'ruler  of  Babylonia.'  They  either  take  the  government  of 
the  south  into  their  hands  or  exercise  the  privilege  of  appoint- 
ing a  governor  of  their  choice  to  regulate  the  affairs  of  the 
Euphrates  Valley.  From  this  time  on,  the  history  of  Baby- 
lonia and  Assyria  may  be  viewed  under  a  single  aspect.  The 
third  period  of  Babylonian  history  —  the  second  of  Assyrian 
history  —  thus  begins  about  noo  B.C.,  and  continues  till  the 
fall  of  Assyria  in  the  year  606  b.c.  These  five  centuries 
represent  the  most  glorious  epoch  of  the  united  Mesopotamian 
empire.  During  this  time,  Assyria  rises  to  the  height  of  an 
all-embracing  power.  With  far  greater  success  than  Egypt,  she 
securely  established  her  sovereignty  over  the  lands  bordering 
on  the  Mediterranean.  After  severe  struggles,  the  Hittites 
are  overcome,  the  names  of  their  strongholds  on  the  Orontes 
changed,  in  order  to  emphasize  their  complete  possession  by 
the  Assyrians,  and  the  principalities  of  Northern  Syria  become 
tributary  to  Assyria.  Phoenicia  and  the  kingdom  of  Israel  are 
conquered,  while  the  southern  kingdom  of  Judah  purchases  a 
mere  shadow  of  independence  by  complete  submission  to  the 
conditions  imposed  by  the  great  and  irresistible  monarchy. 
Far  to  the  northeast  Assyria  extends  her  sway,  while  Baby- 
lonia, though  occasionally  aroused  to  a  resistance  of  the 
tyrannical  bonds  laid  upon  her,  only  to  be  still  further  weak- 
ened, retains  a  distinctive  existence  chiefly  in  name.  The 
culture  of  the  south  is  the  heritage  bequeathed  by  old  Baby- 
lonia to  the  north.  Babylonian  temples  become  the  models 
for  Assyrian  architecture.  The  literary  treasures  in  the 
archives  of  the  sacred  cities  of  the  south  are  copied  by  the 
scribes  of  the  Assyrian  kings,  and  placed  in  the  palaces  of  the 
latter.  Meanwhile,  the  capitol  of  Assyria  moves  towards  the 
north.  Ashur  gives  way  under  the  glorious  reign  of  Ashur- 
nasirbal  to  Calah,  which  becomes  the  capitol  in  the  year  880  n.c. ; 


'/■/IE   LAND   AND    THE   PEOPLE.  43 

and  Calah,  in  turn,  yields  to  Nineveh,  which  becomes,  from 
the  time  of  Tiglathpileser  II.,  in  the  middle  of  the  eighth 
century,  the  center  of  the  great  kingdom.  Under  Ashurbana- 
bal,  who  rules  from  668  to  626  B.C.,  the  climax  of  Assyrian 
power  is  reached.  He  carries  his  arms  to  the  banks  of  the 
Nile,  and  succeeds  in  realizing  the  dreams  of  his  ancestors  of  a 
direct  control  over  the  affairs  of  Egypt.  A  patron  of  science 
and  literature,  as  so  many  great  conquerors,  Ashurbanabal  suc- 
ceeds in  making  Nineveh  a  literary  as  well  as  a  military  center. 
A  vast  collection  of  the  cuneiform  literature  of  Babylonia  is 
gathered  by  him  for  the  benefit  of  his  subjects,  as  he  is  at 
constant  pains  to  tell  us.  The  city  is  further  embellished  with 
magnificent  structures,  and  on  every  side  he  establishes  his 
sovereignty  with  such  force,  that  the  might  of  Assyria  appears 
invincible.  The  fatal  blow,  dealt  with  a  suddenness  that 
remains  a  mystery,  came  from  an  unexpected  quarter.  A 
great  movement  of  wild  northern  hordes,  rather  vaguely  known 
as  the  Cimmerians  and  Scythians,  and  advancing  towards  the 
south,  set  in  shortly  after  the  death  of  Ashurbanabal,  and 
created  great  political  disturbances.  The  vast  number  of 
these  hordes,  their  muscular  strength,  and  their  unrestrained 
cruelty,  made  them  a  foe  which  Assyria  found  as  hard  to 
withstand,  as  Rome  the  approach  of  the  Vandals  and  Goths. 
The  sources  for  our  knowledge  of  the  last  days  of  the  Assyrian 
empire  are  not  sufficient  to  enable  us  to  grasp  the  details,  but 
it  is  certain  that  the  successful  attempt  of  the  Babylonians  to 
throw  off  the  Assyrian  yoke  almost  immediately  after  Ashur- 
banabal's  death,  was  a  symptom  of  the  ravages  which  the  hordes 
made  in  reducing  the  vitality  of  the  Assyrian  empire.  Her 
foes  gained  fresh  courage  from  the  success  that  crowned  the 
revolt  of  Babylonia.  The  Medes,  a  formidable  nation  to  the 
east  of  Assyria,  and  which  had  often  crossed  arms  with  the 
Assyrians,  entered  into  combination  with  Babylonia,  and  the 
two  making  several  united  assaults  upon  Nineveh,  under  the 


44  BABYLON!.  tN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGIOA 

Leadership  of    Kyaxares,    at    last    succeeded    in    effecting    an 

entrance.  The  city  was  captured  and  burned  to  the  ground. 
With  the  fall  of  Assyria,  a  feeling  of  relief  passed  over  the 
entire  eastern  world.  A  great  danger,  threatening  to  extinguish 
the  independence  of  all  of  the  then  known  nations  of  the  globe, 
was  averted.  The  Hebrew  prophets  living  at  the  time  of  this 
downfall,  voice  the  general  rejoicing  that  ensued  when  they 
declared,  that  even  the  cedars  of  Lebanon  leaped  for  joy. 
The  province  of  Assyria  proper,  fell  into  the  hands  of  the 
Medes,  but  Babylonia,  with  her  independence  established  on 
a  firm  footing,  was  the  real  heir  of  Assyria's  spirit.  Her  most 
glorious  monarch,  Nebuchadnezzar  ff.  (604-561  B.C.),  seems 
to  have  dreamed  of  gaining  for  Babylon  the  position,  once  held 
by  Nineveh,  of  mistress  of  the  world.  Taking  Ashurbanabal  as 
his  model,  he  carried  his  arms  to  the  west,  subdued  the 
kingdom  of  Judah,  and,  passing  on  to  Egypt,  strove  to  secure 
for  Babylon,  the  supremacy  exercised  there  for  a  short  time  by 
Assyrian  monarchs.  fn  addition  to  his  military  campaigns, 
however,  he  also  appears  in  the  light  of  a  great  builder,  enlar- 
ging and  beautifying  the  temples  of  Babylonia,  erecting  new 
ones  in  the  various  cities  of  his  realm,  strengthening  the  walls 
of  Babylon,  adorning  the  capital  with  embankment  works  and 
other  improvements,  that  gave  it  a  permanent  place  in  the 
traditions  of  the  ancient  world  as  one  of  the  seven  wonders  of 
the  universe. 

The  glory  of  this  second  Babylonian  empire  was  of  short 
duration,  fts  vaulting  ambition  appears  to  have  overleaped 
itself.  Realizing  for  a  time  the  Assyrian  ideal  of  a  world 
monarchy,  the  fall  was  as  sudden  as  its  rise  was  unexpected, 
fnternal  dissensions  gave  the  first  indication  of  the  hollowness 
of  the  state.  Nebuchadnezzar's  son  was  murdered  in  560  B.C., 
within  two  years  after  reaching  the  throne,  by  his  own  brother- 
in -law,  Neriglissar ;  and  the  latter  dying  after  a  reign  of  only 
four  years,  his  infant  child  was  put  out  of  the  way  and  Nabon- 


THE   LAND   AND    THE   PEOPLE.  45 

nedos,  a  nigh  officer  of  the  state,  but  without  royal  prerogative, 
mounted  the  throne.  In  the  year  550  news  reached  Babylon 
that  Cyrus,  the  king  of  Anzan,  had  dealt  a  fatal  blow  to  the 
Median  empire,  capturing  its  king,  Astyages,  and  joining  Media 
to  his  own  district.  He  founded  what  was  afterwards  known 
as  the  Persian  empire. 

The  overthrow  of  the  Medes  gave  Cyrus  control  over  Assyria, 
and  it  was  to  be  expected  that  his  gaze  should  be  turned  in  the 
direction  of  Babylonia.  Nabonnedos  recognized  the  danger, 
but  all  his  efforts  to  strengthen  the  powers  of  resistance  to  the 
Persian  arms  were  of  no  avail.  Civil  disturbances  divided  the 
Babylonians.  The  cohesion  between  the  various  districts  was 
loosened,  and  within  the  city  of  Babylon  itself,  a  party  arose 
antagonistic  to  Nabonnedos,  who  in  their  short-sightedness 
hailed  the  advance  of  Cyrus.  Under  these  circumstances, 
Babylon  fell  an  easy  prey  to  the  Persian  conqueror.  In  the 
autumn  of  the  year  539  Cyrus  entered  the  city  in  triumph,  and 
was  received  with  such  manifestations  of  joy  by  the  populace,  as 
to  make  one  almost  forget  that  with  his  entrance,  the  end  of  a 
great  empire  had  come.  Politically  and  religiously,  the  history 
of  Babylonia  and  Assyria  terminates  with  the  advent  of  Cyrus  ; 
and  this  despite  the  fact  that  it  was  his  policy  to  leave  the  state 
of  affairs,  including  religious  observances,  as  far  as  possible, 
undisturbed.  A  new  spirit  had,  however,  come  into  the  land 
with  him.  The  official  religion  of  the  state  was  that  practiced 
by  Cyrus  and  his  predecessors  in  their  native  land.  The 
essential  doctrines  of  the  religion,  commonly  known  as  Maz- 
deism  or  Zoroastrianism,  presented  a  sharp  contrast  to  the 
beliefs  that  still  were  current  in  Babylonia,  and  it  was  inevit- 
able that  with  the  influx  of  new  ideas,  the  further  development 
of  Babylonian  worship  was  cut  short.  The  respect  paid  by 
Cyrus  to  the  Babylonian  gods  was  a  mere  matter  of  policy. 
Still,  the  religious  rites  continued  to  be  practiced  as  of  old  in 
Babylonia  and  Assyria  for  a  long  time,  and  when  the  religion 


46  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

finally  disappeared,  under  the  subsequent  conquests  of  the 
Greeks,  Romans,  and  Arabs,  it  left  its  traces  in  the  popular 
superstitions  and  in  the  ineradicable  traditions  that  survived. 
But  so  far  as  the  history  of  this  religion  is  concerned,  it 
comes  to  an  end  with  the  downfall  of  the  second  Babylonian 
empire. 


The  period,  then,  to  be  covered  by  a  treatment  of  the 
religion  of  the  Babylonians  and  Assyrians  extends  over  the 
long  interval  between  about  4000  B.C.  and  the  middle  of  the 
sixth  century.  The  development  of  this  religion  follows  closely 
the  course  of  civilization  and  of  history  in  the  territory  under 
consideration.  The  twofold  division,  accordingly,  into  Baby- 
lonia and  Assyria,  is  the  one  that  suggests  itself  also  for  the 
religion.  The  beginning,  as  is  evident  from  the  historical 
sketch  given,  must  be  made  with  Babylonia.  It  will  be  seen 
that,  while  the  rites  there  and  in  Assyria  are  much-  the  same, 
the  characters  of  the  gods  as  they  developed  in  the  south 
were  quite  different  from  those  of  the  north  ;  and,  again,  it 
was  inevitable  that  the  Assyrian  influence  manifest  in  the 
second  Babylonian  empire  should  give  to  the  religion  of  the 
south  at  this  time,  some  aspects  which  were  absent  during  the 
days  of  the  old  Babylonian  empire.  In  Babylonia,  again,  the 
political  changes  form  the  basis  for  the  transformation  to  be 
observed  in  the  position  occupied  by  the  deities  at  different 
periods  ;  and  the  same  general  remark  applies  to  the  deities 
peculiar  to  Assyria,  who  must  be  studied  in  connection  with 
the  course  pursued  by  the  Assyrian  empire. 

The  division  of  the  subject  which  thus  forces  itself  upon  us 
is  twofold,  (1)   geographical,  and  (2)  historical. 

It  will  be  necessary  to  treat  first  of  the  beliefs  and  pan- 
theon developed  during  the  first  two  periods  of  Babylonian 
history,    down    to    the    practical     concpiest     of     Babylonia    by 


THE    LAND   AND    THE   PEOPLE.  47 

Assyria.  Then,  turning  to  Assyria,  the  traits  of  the  pantheon 
peculiar  to  Upper  Mesopotamia  will  be  set  forth.  In  the  third 
place,  the  history  of  the  religion  will  be  traced  in  Babylonia 
during  the  union  of  the  Babylonian-Assyrian  empire ;  and, 
lastly,  the  new  phases  of  that  religion  which  appeared  in  the 
days  of  the  second  Babylonian  empire.  Turning  after  this  to 
other  aspects  of  the  religion,  it  will  be  found  that  the  religious 
rites  were  only  to  a  small  degree  influenced  by  political  changes, 
while  the  literature  and  religious  art  are  almost  exclusively 
products  of  Babylonia.  In  treating  of  these  subjects,  accord- 
ingly, no  geographical  divisions  are  called  for,  in  setting  forth 
their  chief  features. 

The  general  estimate  to  be  given  at  the  close  of  the  volume 
will  furnish  an  opportunity  of  making  a  comparison  between 
the  Babylonian-Assyrian  religion  and  other  religions  of  the 
ancient  world,  with  a  view  to  determining  what  foreign  in- 
fluences may  be  detected  in  it,  as  well  as  ascertaining  the 
influence  it  exerted  upon  others. 


CHAPTER    III. 

GENERAL   TRAITS    OF   THE   OLD   BABYLONIAN   PANTHEON. 

The  Babylonian  religion  in  the  oldest  form  known  to  us 
may  best  be  described  as  a  mixture  of  local  and  nature  cults. 
Starting  with  that  phase  of  religious  beliefs  known  as  Animism, 
which  has  been  ascertained  to  be  practically  universal  in 
primitive  society,  the  Babylonians,  from  ascribing  life  to  the 
phenomena  of  nature,  to  trees,  stones,  and  plants,  as  well  as  to 
such  natural  events,  as  storm,  rain,  and  wind,  and  as  a  matter  of 
course  to  the  great  luminaries  and  to  the  stars  —  would,  on  the 
one  hand,  be  led  to  invoke  an  infinite  number  of  spirits  who 
were  supposed  to  be,  in  some  way  the  embodiment  of  the  life 
that  manifested  itself  in  such  diverse  manners  ;  and  yet,  on 
the  other  hand,  this  tendency  would  be  restricted  by  the 
experience  which  would  point  to  certain  spirits,  as  exercising  a 
more  decisive  influence  upon  the  affairs  of  man  than  others. 
The  result  of  this  would  be  to  give  a  preponderance  to  the 
worship  of  the  sun  and  moon  and  the  water,  and  of  such 
natural  phenomena  as  rain,  wind,  and  storms,  with  their  accom- 
paniment of  thunder  and  lightning,  as  against  the  countless 
sprites  believed  to  be  lurking  everywhere.  The  latter,  however, 
would  not  for  this  reason  be  ignored  altogether.  Since  every- 
thing was  endowed  with  life,  there  was  not  only  a  spirit  of  the 
tree  which  produced  the  fruit,  but  there  were  spirits  in  every 
field.  To  them  the  ground  belonged,  and  upon  their  mercy 
depended  the  success  or  failure  of  the  produce.  To  secure  the 
favor  of  the  rain  and  the  sun  was  not  sufficient  to  the  agricul- 
turist; he  was  obliged  to  obtain  the  protection  of  the  guardian 
spirits  of  the  soil,  in  order  to  be  sure  of  reaping  the  fruit  of  his 


TRAITS   OF    THE    OLD   BABYLONIAN  PANTHEON.       49 

labors.  Again,  when  through  association,  the  group  of  arable 
plots  grew  into  a  hamlet,  and  then  through  continued  growth 
into  a  town,  the  latter,  regarded  as  a  unit  by  virtue  of  its 
political  organization  under  a  chief  ruler,  would  necessarily  be 
supposed  to  have  some  special  power  presiding  over  its  desti- 
nies, protecting  it  from  danger,  and  ready  to  defend  the  rights 
and  privileges  of  those  who  stood  immediately  under  its  juris- 
diction. Each  Babylonian  city,  large  or  small,  would  in  this 
way  obtain  a  deity  devoted  to  its  welfare,  and  as  the  city  grew 
in  extent,  absorbing  perhaps  others  lying  about,  and  advancing 
in  this  way  to  the  dignity  of  a  district,  the  city's  god  would 
correspondingly  increase  his  jurisdiction.  As  it  encroached 
upon  the  domain  of  other  local  deities,  it  would  by  conquest 
annihilate  the  latter,  or  reduce  them  to  a  subservient  position. 
The  new  regime  would  be  expressed  by  making  the  conquered 
deity,  the  servant  of  the  victorious,  or  the  two  might  be  viewed 
in  the  relation  of  father  to  son  ;  and  again,  in  the  event  of  a 
peaceful  amalgamation  of  two  cities  or  districts,  the  protecting 
deities  might  join  hands  in  a  compact,  mirroring  the  partnership 
represented  by  the  conjugal  tie.  In  this  way,  there  arose  in 
Babylon  a  selection,  as  it  were,  out  of  an  infinite  variety  of  per- 
sonified forces,,  manifest  or  concealed,  that  at  one  time  may 
have  been  objects  of  worship.  The  uniformity  of  the  spirit 
world,  which  is  the  characteristic  trait  of  primitive  Animism, 
gave  way  to  a  differentiation  regulated  by  the  political  develop- 
ment and  the  social  growth  of  Babylonia.  The  more  important 
natural  forces  became  gods,  and  the  inferior  ones  were,  as  a 
general  thing,  relegated  to  the  secondary  position  of  mere 
sprites,  —  like  the  jinns,  in  Arabic  beliefs.  Only  in  the  case  of 
the  guardian  spirit  of  an  entire  city  or  district,  would  there 
result  —  and  even  this  not  invariably  -  -  an  elevation  to  the 
grade  of  deity,  in  the  proper  sense  of  the  word.  In  many  cases, 
however,  this  guardian  deity  might  be  a  heavenly  body,  as  the 
moon  or  sun  or  stars,  all   of  which  were   supposed  to  regulate 


50 


/lA/iVLON/AN  A.SSYA'/AN   RELIGION 


the  fate  of  mankind  or  some  force  of  nature,  as  the  rain  or  the 
storm  ;  and  even  if  this  were  not  originally  the  case,  the  pro- 
tecting deity  might,  in  the  course  of  time,  become  identified 
with  one  of  the  forces  of  nature  ;  and,  if  for  no  other  reason, 
simply  because  of  the  prominence  which  the  worship  of  the 
force  in  question  acquired  in  the  place.  As  a  consequence, 
the  mixture  of  local  and  nature  cults  is  so  complete  that  it  is 
often  impossible  to  distinguish  the  one  from  the  other.  It  is 
hard  in  many  cases  to  determine  whether  the  deity  which  is 
identified  with  a  certain  city  was  originally  a  mere  local  spirit 
watching  over  a  certain  restricted  territory,  or  a  personification 
of  a  natural  force  associated  in  some  way  with  a  certain  section 
of  Babylonia. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

BABYLONIAN  SODS  PRIOR  TO  THE  DAYS  OF  HAMMURABI. 

With  these  preliminary  remarks,  we  may  turn,  as  the  first 
part  of  our  subject,  to  a  consideration  of  the  oldest  of  the 
Babylonian  gods.  Our  main  sources  are  the  inscriptions  of 
the  old  Babylonian  rulers,  above  referred  to.  These  are,  in 
most  cases,  of  a  dedicatory  character,  being  inscribed  on  statues, 
cylinders,  or  tablets,  placed  in  the  temples  or  on  objects  - 
cones,  knobs,  stones  —  presented  as  votive  offerings  to  some 
god.  Besides  the  inscriptions  of  the  rulers,  we  have  those  of 
officials  and  others.  Many  of  these  are  likewise  connected 
directly  or  indirectly  with  religious  worship. 

The  advantage  of  the  historical  texts  over  the  purely  religious 
ones  consists  in  their  being  dated,  either  accurately  or  approxi- 
mately. For  this  reason,  the  former  must  be  made  the  basis  for 
a  rational  theory  of  the  development  of  the  Babylonian  pantheon 
through  the  various  periods  above  instanced.  The  data  fur- 
nished by  the  religious  texts  can  be  introduced  only,  as  they 
accord  with  the  facts  revealed  by  the  historical  inscriptions  in 
each  period. 

Taking  up  the  group  of  inscriptions  prior  to  the  union  of  the 
Babylonian  States  under  Hammurabi,  i.e.,  prior  to  2300  B.C.,  we 
find  these  gods  mentionod  :  Bel,  Belit,  Nin-khar-sag,  Nin-gir-su, 
also  appearing  as  Shul-gur,  Bau,  Ga-sig(?)-dug,  Ea,  Nin-a-gal, 
Nergal,  Shamash,  appearing  also  under  the  form  Utu;  A,  or 
Malkatu,  the  consort  of  Shamash,  Nannar  or  Sin,  Nana,  Anunit, 
Ishtar,  Innanna  or  Ninni,  Nina,  Nin-mar,  Dun-shagga,  Gal-alim, 
Anu,  Nin-gish-zida,  Nin-si-a,  Nin-shakh,  Lugal-banda  and  his 
consort  Nin-gul,  Dumuzi-zu-aba,  Nisaba,  Ku(?)anna,  Lugal- 
erima(?),  Dagan,  Ishum,  Umu,  Pa-sag,  Nin-e-gal,  and  Nin-gal. 


52  BAB  YLONIAN-ASS  )  'RIA  A"  RELIGION. 

Regarding  these  names,  it  may  be  said  at  once  that  the  read- 
ing, in  many  cases,  is  to  be  looked  upon  as  merely  provisional. 
Written,  as  they  usually  are,  in  the  ideographic  "  style,"  the 
phonetic  reading  can  only  be  determined  when  the  deity  in 
question  can  be  identified  with  one,  whose  name  is  written  at 
some  place  phonetically,  or  when  the  ideographs  employed  are 
so  grouped  as  to  place  the  phonetic  reading  beyond  doubt. 
The  plan  to  be  followed  in  this  book  will  be  to  give  the 
ideographic  reading1  as  provisional  wherever  the  real  pronuncia- 
tion is  unknown  or  uncertain.  The  ideographic  designation  of 
a  deity  is  of  great  value,  inasmuch  as  the  ideographs  them- 
selves frequently  reveal  the  character  of  the  god,  though  of 
course  the  additional  advantage  is  obvious  when  the  name 
appears  in  both  the  ideographic  and  the  phonetic  writing.  It 
will,  therefore,  form  part  of  a  delineation  of  the  Babylonian 
pantheon  to  interpret  the  picture,  as  it  were,  under  which  each 
deity  is  viewed. 

En-lil  or  Bel. 

Taking  up  the  gods  in  the  order  named,  the  first  one,  Bel, 
is  also  the  one  who  appears  on  the  oldest  monuments  as  yet 
unearthed  —  the  inscriptions  of  Nippur.  His  name  is,  at  this 
time,  written  invariably  as  En-lil.  In  the  Babylonian  theology, 
he  is  '  the  lord  of  the  lower  world.'  He  represents,  as  it  were, 
the  unification  of  the  various  forces  whose  seat  and  sphere  of 
action  is  among  the  inhabited  parts  of  the  globe,  both  on  the 
surface  and  beneath,  for  the  term  '  lower  world  '  is  here  used  in 
contrast  to  the  upper  or  heavenly  world.  Such  a  conception 
manifestly  belongs  to  the  domain  of  abstract  thought,  and  it 
may  be  concluded,  therefore,  that  either  the  deity  belongs  to 
an  advanced  stage  of  Babylonian  culture,  or  that  the  original 
view  of  the  deity  was  different  from  the   one  just  mentioned. 

1  Indicated  by  separating  the  syllables  composing  the  name. 


BABYLONIAN  GODS.  S3 

The  latter  is  the  case.  Primarily,  the  ideograph  Lil  is  used  to 
designate  a  '  demon  '  in  general,  and  En-lil  is  therefore  the  '  chief 
demon.'  Primitive  as  such  a  conception  is,  it  points  to  some 
system  of  thought  that  transcends  primitive  Animism,  which  is 
characterized  rather  by  the  equality  accorded  to  all  spirits. 
The  antiquity  of  the  association  of  En-lil  with  Nippur  justifies 
the  conclusion  that  we  have  before  us  a  local  deity  who, 
originally  the  protecting  spirit  merely,  of  a  restricted  territory, 
acquires  the  position  of  '  chief  demon  '  as  the  town  of  Nippur 
grows  to  be  the  capitol  of  a  large  and  powerful  district.  The 
fame  and  sanctity  of  Nippur  survives  political  vicissitudes ;  and, 
indeed,  in  proportion  as  Nippur  loses  political  prestige,  the 
great  deity  of  the  place  is  released  from  the  limitations  due  to 
his  local  origin  and  rises  to  the  still  higher  dignity  of  a  great 
power  whose  domain  is  the  entire  habitable  universe.  As 
the  '  lord  of  the  lower  world,'  En-lil  is  contrasted  to  a  god  Anu, 
who  presides  over  the  heavenly  bodies.  The  age  of  Sargon 
(3800  b.c),  in  whose  inscriptions  En-lil  already  occurs,  is  one 
of  considerable  culture,  as  is  sufficiently  evidenced  by  the 
flourishing  condition  of  art,  and  there  can  therefore  be  no 
objection  against  the  assumption  that  even  at  this  early  period, 
a  theological  system  should  have  been  evolved  which  gave  rise 
to  beliefs  in  great  powers  whose  dominion  embraces  the  '  upper ' 
and  '  lower '  worlds.  It  was  because  of  this  wide  scope  of 
his  power  that  he  became  known  as  Bel,  i.e.,  the  lord  par 
excellence ;  and  it  is  equally  natural  to  find  his  worship  spread 
over  the  whole  of  Babylonia.  In  the  south,  the  patron  deity  of 
Lagash  is  designated  by  Gudea  as  "  the  mighty  warrior  of 
Bel,"  showing  the  supremacy  accorded  to  the  latter.  A  temple 
to  En-lil  at  Lagash,  and  known  as  E-adda,  'house  of  the 
father,'  by  virtue  of  the  relationship  existing  between  the  god 
of  Nippur  and  Nin-girsu,  is  mentioned  by  Uru-kagina.  The 
temple  is  described  as  a  lofty  structure  '  rising  up  to  heaven.' 
In  the  north,   Nippur   remains   the   place   where   his   worship 


54  H  A  HYLONI AN- ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

acquired  the  greatest  importance,  so  that  Nippur  was  known 
as  the  "land  of  Bel."  The  temple  sacred  to  him  at  that  place 
was  a  great  edifice,  famous  throughout  Babylonian  history  as 
E-Kur,  i.e.,  mountain  house,  in  the  construction  of  which,  a  long 
line  of  Babylonian  rulers  took  part.  From  Naram-Sin,  ruler 
of  Agade,  on  through  the  period  of  Cassite  rule,  the  kings  of 
Nippur  proudly  include  in  their  titles  that  of  '  builder  of  the 
Temple  of  Bel  at  Nippur,'  measuring  their  attachment  to  the 
deity  by  the  additions  and  repairs  made  to  his  sacred  edifice.1 
Besides  the  kings  of  Agade,  the  rulers  of  other  places  pay  their 
devotions  to  Bel  of  Nippur.  So,  a  king  of  Kish,  whose  name 
is  read  Alu-usharshid  by  Professor  Hilprecht,-  brings  costly 
vases  of  marble  and  limestone  from  Elam  and  offers  them  to 
Bel  as  a  token  of  victory  ;  and  this  at  a  period  even  earlier 
than  Sargon.  Even  when  En-lil  is  obliged  to  yield  a  modicum 
of  his  authority  to  the  growing  supremacy  of  the  patron  deity 
of  the  city  of  Babylon,  the  highest  tribute  that  can  be  paid  to 
the  latter,  is  to  combine  with  his  real  name,  Marduk,  the  title  of 
"Bel,"  which  of  right  belongs  to  En-lil.  We  shall  see  how  this 
combination  of  En-lil,  or  Bel,  with  Marduk  reflects  political 
changes  that  took  place  in  the  Euphrates  Valley ;  and  it  is  a 
direct  consequence  of  this  later  association  of  the  old  Bel  of 
Nippur  with  the  chief  god  of  Babylon,  that  the  original  traits  of 
the  former  become  obscured  in  the  historical  and  religious 
texts.  Dimmed  popular  traditions,  which  will  be  set  forth 
in  their  proper  place,  point  to  his  having  been  at  one  time 
regarded  as  a  powerful  chieftain  armed  with  mighty  weapons, 
but  ensra«;ed  in  conflicts  for  the  ultimate  benefit  of  mankind. 
On  the  whole,  he  is  a  beneficent  deity,  though  ready  to  inflict 


1  At  the  period  when  the  kings  of  Ur  extend  their  rule  over  Nippur,  they,  too,  do 
not  omit  to  refer  to  the  distinction  of  having  been  called  to  the  service  of  the  great 
god  at  his  temple. 

-  The  name  signifies, '  He  has  founded  the  city,'  the  subject  of  the  verb  being  some 
deity  whose  name  is  omitted. 


BABYLONIAN   GODS.  55 

severe  punishment  for  disobedience  to  his  commands.  We 
must  distinguish,  then,  in  the  case  of  En-lil,  at  least  four 
phases : 

i.    His  original  role  as  a  local  deity; 

2.  The  extension  of  his  power  to  the  grade  of  a  great  'lord' 

over  a  large  district ; 

3.  Dissociation  from  local  origins  to  become  the  supreme 

lord  of  the  lower  world ;   and 

4.  The  transfer  of  his  name  and  powers  as  god  of  Nippur  to 

Marduk,  the  god  of  Babylon. 
The  last  two  phases  can  best  be  set  forth  when  we  come  to 
the  period,  marked  by  the  political  supremacy  of  the  city  of 
Babylon.      It  is  sufficient,  at  this  point,  to  have  made  clear  his 
position  as  god  of  Nippur. 

Nin-lil  or  Belit. 

The  consort  of  En-lil  is  Nin-Lil,  the  '  mistress  of  the  lower 
world.'  She  is  known  also  as  Belit,  the  feminine  form  to  Bel, 
i.e.,  the  lady  par  excellence.  She,  too,  had  her  temple  at  Nippur, 
the  age  of  which  goes  back,  at  least,  to  the  first  dynasty  of  Ur. 
But  the  glory  of  the  goddess  pales  by  the  side  of  her  powerful 
lord.  She  is  naught  but  a  weak  reflection  of  Bel,  as  in  general 
the  consorts  of  the  gods  are.  Another  title  by  which  this  same 
goddess  was  known  is 

NlN-KHAR-SAG,1 

which  means  the  '  lady  of  the  high  or  great  mountain.'  The 
title  may  have  some  reference  to  the  great  mountain  where  the 
gods  were  supposed  to  dwell,  and  which  was  known  to  Baby- 

1  Jensen,  Keils  Bibl.  3, 1,  p.  23,  proposes  to  read  Nin-Ur-sag,  but  without  sufficient 
reason,  it  seems  to  me.  The  writing  being  a  purely  ideographic  form,  an  epi- 
theton  omans,  the  question  of  how  the  ideographs  are  to  be  read  is  not  of  great 
moment. 


56  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION 

lonians  as  the  '  mountain  of  the  lands.'  Bel,  as  the  chief  of 
the  gods,  is  more  particularly  associated  with  this  mountain. 
Hence  his  temple  is  called  the  '  mountain  house.'  From  being 
regarded  as  the  inhabitant  of  the  mountain,  he  comes  to  be 
identified  with  the  mountain  itself.  Accordingly,  he  is  some- 
times addressed  as  the  "great  mountain,"1  and  his  consort 
would  therefore  be  appropriately  termed  '  the  lady  of  the  great 
mountain.'  Besides  the  temple  at  Nippur,  Belit,  as  Nin-khar- 
sag,  had  a  sanctuary  at  Girsu,  one  of  the  quarters  at  Lagash 
(see  under  Nin-girsu),  the  earliest  mention  of  which  occurs  on 
an  inscription  of  Ur-Bau.  The  latter  calls  the  goddess  '  the 
mother  of  the  gods,'  which  further  establishes  her  identity  with 
the  consort  of  Bel.  Entemena,  another  governor  of  Lagash, 
places  his  domain  under  the  protection  of  Nin-khar-sag.  The 
worship  at  Nippur,  however,  remained  most  prominent.  The 
continued  popularity  of  her  cult  is  attested  by  the  fortress 
Dur-zakar,  which  a  later  king,  Samsuiluna  (r.  2200),  erected  in 
her  honor. 

NlN-GIR-SU. 

In  the  inscriptions  of  Gudea  and  of  his  time,  the  god  most 
prominently  mentioned  is  the  "  Lord  of  Girsu.''  Girsu  itself, 
as  the  inscriptions  show,  is  one  of  the  four  sections  into  which 
the  capitol  city  of  Lagash  was  divided.  It  was  there  that  the 
temple  stood  which  was  sacred  to  the  patron  deity,  and  we  may 
conclude  from  this  that  Girsu  is  the  oldest  part  of  the  city. 
Afterwards,  Lagash  became  the  general  name  for  the  capitol 
through  being  the  quarter  where  the  great  palace  of  the  king 
was  erected.  That  Girsu  was  once  quite  distinct  from  Lagash 
is  also  evident  from  the  title  of  "  king  of  Girsu,"  with  which  a 
certain  Uru-kagina,  who  is  to  be  placed  somewhat  before 
Gudea,    contents    himself.      The   other   three    quarters,    all    of 

1  We  may  compare  the  poetic  application  '  rock  '  to  Yahweh  in  the  ( )ld  Testament, 
e.g.,  Job  i.  12,  and  frequently  in  Psalms, —  lxii.  3,  7;  xcii.  16,  18,  etc. 


BABYLONIAN  GODS.  57 

which  were  originally  independent  cities,  are  Uru-azaga,  Nina, 
and  apparently  Gish-galla.1 

Nin-girsu  is  frequently  termed  the  warrior  of  Bel,  —  the  one 
who  in  the  service  of  the  '  lord  of  the  lower  world,'  appears  in 
the  thick  of  the  fight,  to  aid  the  subjects  of  Bel.  In  this  role,  he 
is  identical  with  a  solar  deity  who  enjoys  especial  prominence 
among  the  warlike  Assyrians,  whose  name  is  provisionally  read 
Nin-ib,  but  whose  real  name  may  turn  out  to  be  Adar.2  The 
rulers  of  Lagash  declare  themselves  to  have  been  chosen  for 
the  high  office  by  Nin-girsu,  and  as  if  to  compensate  themselves 
for  the  degradation  implied  in  being  merely patesis,  or  govern- 
ors, serving  under  some  powerful  chief,  they  call  themselves 
the  patesis  of  Nin-girsu,  implying  that  the  god  was  the  master 
to  whom  they  owed  allegiance.  The  temple  sacred  to  him  at 
Girsu  was  called  E-ninnu,  and  also  by  a  longer  name  that 
described  the  god  as  the  one  '  who  changes  darkness  into 
light,'  — the  reference  being  to  the  solar  character  of  the  god 
Nin-ib  with  whom  Nin-girsu  is  identified.  In  this  temple, 
Gudea  and  other  rulers  place  colossal  statues  of  themselves, 
but  temper  the  vanity  implied,  by  inscribing  on  the  front  and 
back  of  these  statues,  an  expression  of  their  devotion  to  their 
god.  To  Nin-girsu,  most  of  the  objects  found  at  Tell-loh  are 
dedicated;  conspicuous  among  which  are  the  many  clay  cones, 
that  became  the  conventional  objects  for  votive  offerings. 
There  was  another  side,  however,  to  his  nature,  besides  the 
belligerent  one.     As  the  patron  of  Lagash,  he  also  presided 

1  Reading  doubtful  Jensen  suggests  Erim.  Hommel  (Proc.  Soc.  Bibl.  Arch.  xv. 
37  seg.)  endeavored  to  identify  the  place  with  Babylon,  but  his  views  are  untenable. 
If  Gish-galla  was  not  a  part  of  Lagash,  it  could  not  have  been  far  removed  from  it. 
It  was  Amiaud  who  first  suggested  that  Shir-pur-la  (or  Lagash)  was  the  general 
name  for  a  city  that  arose  from  an  amalgamation  of  four  originally  distinct  quarters. 
("Sirpurla"  in  Revue  Archeologiqtte,  iSSS.)  The  suggestion  has  been  generally, 
though  not  universally  accepted. 

2  That  Ninib  is  only  an  ideographic  form  is  sufficiently  clear  from  the  element 
NIN-,  lord.  The  proof,  however,  that  Ninib  is  Adar,  is  still  wanting.  See  Jensen, 
I\i>s)iiologie  der  Babylonier,  pp.  457,  458. 


58  BBBYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

over  the  agricultural  prosperity  of  the  district.  In  this  role  he 
is  addressed  as  Shul-gur  or  Shul-gur-an,  i.e.,  the  "  god  of  the 
corn  heaps  ";  Entemena  and  his  son  Enanna-tuma  in  erecting  a 
kind  of  storehouse  which  they  place  under  the  protection  of 
Nin-girsu,  declare  that  their  god  is  Shul-gur  ; '  and  an  old  hymn  - 
identifies  him  with  Tammuz,  the  personification  of  agricultural 
activity.  Such  a  combination  of  apparently  opposing  attri- 
butes is  a  natural  consequence  of  the  transformation  of  what 
may  originally  have  been  the  personification  of  natural  forces, 
into  local  deities.  Each  field  had  its  protecting  spirit,  but  for 
the  city  as  a  whole,  a  local  deity,  whose  rule  mirrored  the  con- 
trol of  the  human  chief  over  his  subjects,  alone  was  available. 
To  him  who  watched  over  all  things  pertaining  to  the  welfare 
of  the  territory  coming  under  his  jurisdiction,  various  attributes, 
as  occasion  required,  were  ascribed,  and  quite  apart  from  his 
original  character,  the  god  could  thus  be  regarded,  as  the  warrior 
and  the  peaceful  husbandman  at  the  same  time. 


Bait. 

Perhaps  the  most  prominent  of  the  goddesses  in  the  ancient 
Babylonian  period  was  Ban.  One  of  the  rulers  of  Lagash 
has  embodied  the  name  of  the  goddess  in  his  name,  calling 
himself  Ur-Bau.  It  is  natural,  therefore,  to  find  him  more 
especially  devoted  to  the  worship  of  this  deity.  He  does  not 
tire  of  singing  her  praises,  and  of  speaking  of  the  temple  he 
erected  in  her  honor.  Still,  Ur-Bau  does  not  stand  alone  in 
his  devotion;    Uru-kagina,  Gudea,  and  others  refer  to  Bau  fre- 

i  From  the  context  (De  Sarzec,  D'econvertes,  pi.  (>.  no.  4,11.  13-21, and  pi.  31, 
no.  3,  col.  iii.  11.  2-6),  there  can  lx;  no  doubt  that  Shul-gur  (or  Shul-gur-ana)  is  an 
epithet  of  Nin-girsu.  The  ideographs  descriptive  ol  tin-  edifice  suggest  a  com  maga- 
zine of  some  kind.  One  is  reminded  of  tin-  storehouses  tor  grain  in  Egypt.  See 
Jensen"s  Notes,  Keils  Bibl.  3,  1,  pp.  15,  18,  73.  A  comparison  of  the  two  texts  in 
question  makes  it  probable  that  Ab-gi  and  E-bi-gar  arc  synonymous. 

-  Rawlinson,  iv.  2;,  no.  6;  u,  45-46. 


BABYLONIAN  GODS.  59 

quently,  while  in  the  incantation  texts,  she  is  invoked  as  the 
great  mother,  who  gives  birth  to  mankind  and  restores  the 
body  to  health.  In  the  old  Babylonian  inscriptions  she  is  called 
the  chief  daughter  of  Anu,  the  god  of  heaven.  Among  her 
titles,  the  one  most  frequently  given  is  that  of  '  good  lady.' 
She  is  the  'mother'  who  fixes  the  destinies  of  men  and  pro- 
vides 'abundance'  for  the  tillers  of  the  soil.  Gudea  calls 
her  his  mistress,  and  declares  that  it  is  she  who  "  fills  him 
with  speech,"  —  a  phrase  whose  meaning  seems  to  be  that 
to  Bau  he  owes  the  power  he  wields.  Locally,  she  is  identi- 
fied with  Uru-azaga  (meaning  '  brilliant  town  '),  a  quarter  of 
Lagash ;  and  it  was  there  that  her  temple  stood.  As  a 
consequence,  we  find  her  in  close  association  with  Nin-girsu, 
the  god  of  Girsu.  We  may  indeed  go  further  and  assume 
that  Girsu  and  Uru-azaga  are  the  two  oldest  quarters  of  the 
city,  the  combination  of  the  two  representing  the  first  natural 
steps  in  the  development  of  the  principality,  afterwards  known 
as  Lagash,  through  the  addition  of  other  quarters.1  She 
is  indeed  explicitly  called  the  consort  of  Nin-girsu;  and  this 
relation  is  implied  also,  in  the  interesting  phrase  used  by 
Gudea,  who  presents  gifts  to  Bau  in  the  name  of  Nin-girsu, 
and  calls  them  '  marriage  gifts.' 2  It  is  interesting  to  find,  at 
this  early  period,  the  evidence  for  the  custom  that  still  prevails 
in  the  Orient,  which  makes  the  gifts  of  the  bridegroom  to  his 
chosen  one,  an  indispensable  formality.3  These  gifts  were 
offered  on  the  New  Year's  Day,  known  as  Zag-muk,  and  the 
importance  of  the  worship  of  Bau  is  evidenced  by  the  desig- 
nation of  this  day,  as  the  festival  of  Bau. 

The   offerings,  themselves,  consist    of  lambs,    sheep,  birds, 
fish,    cream,  besides   dates   and   various   other  fruits.       When 

1  It  is  noticeable  that  there  is  no  mention   made  of  a  special   god  of  Lagash, 
which  points  to  the  later  origin  of  the  name. 

2  Inscr.  D,  col.  ii.  13  ;  G,  col.  ii.  11.  i-S  ;  iii.  4  seq. 

3  See  Gen.  xxiv.  53.     Burkhardt,  Notes  on  the  Bedouins,  i.  109,  gives  an  exam- 
ple of  the  custom. 


60  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Uru-azaga  becomes  a  part  of  Lagash,  Bau's  dignity  is  height- 
ened to  that  of  '  mother  of  Lagash.'  As  the  consort  of  Nin- 
girsu,  she  is  identified  with  the  goddess  Gula,  the  name  more 
commonly  applied  to  the  '  princely  mistress  '  of  Nin-ib,  whose 
worship  continues  down  to  the  days  of  the  neo-Babylonian 
monarchy. 

It  is  quite  certain,  however,  that  Bau  is  originally  an  inde- 
pendent goddess,  and  that  the  association  of  Uru-azaga  and 
Girsu 1  lead  to  her  identification  with  Gula.  Regarding  her 
original  nature,  a  certain  index  is  her  character  as  "daughter 
of  Ann."  Anu  being  the  god  of  heaven,  Bau  must  be  sought 
in  the  upper  realm  of  personified  forces,  rather  than  elsewhere ; 
but  exactly  which  one  she  is,  it  is  difficult  to  say.  Hommel, 
indeed,2  is  of  opinion  that  she  is  the  personified  watery  depth, 
the  primitive  chaos  which  has  only  the  heavens  above  it;  but 
in  giving  this  explanation,  he  is  influenced  by  the  desire  to 
connect  the  name  of  Bau  with  the  famous  term  for  chaos  in 
Genesis,  Tohu-wa-bohu.  There  is,  however,  no  proof  what- 
soever that  Bau  and  Bohu  have  anything  to  do  with  one 
another.  A  goddess  who  can  hardly  be  distinguished  from 
Bau  is 

Ga-sig-(?)dug.3 

Indeed,  from  the  fact  that  she  is  also  the  '  mother  of  Lagash,' 
it  might  seem  that  this  is  but  another  name  for  Bau.  How- 
ever, elsewhere,  in  two  lists  of  deities  invoked  by  Gudea  (Inscr. 
B,  col.  ii.  17),  Ga-sig-dug  is  given  a  separate  place  by  the  side 
of  I5au,  once  placed  before  and  once  after  the  latter ;  and  it  is 
clear  therefore  that  she  was  originally  distinct  from  Bau.  For 
Gudea,  Ga-sig-dug  is  the  mother  who  produced  him.     He  is 

1  The  two  names  aie  used  by  ( iudea  (I user.  G,  col.  iii.  12)  in  a  way  to  indicate  that 
they  embrace  the  whole  district  of   Lagash. 

2  Semit.  I  "dlker,  p.  382. 

3  See  Jensen.  AV/'/.s  MM.  3,  1,28,  note  2. 


BABYLONIAN  GODS.  61 

her  servant  and  she  is  his  mistress.  Lagash  is  her  beloved 
city,  and  there  he  prepares  for  her  a  dwelling-place,  which 
later  rulers,  like  Entena,  embellish.  She  is  called  the  '  bril- 
liant '  (Azag),  but  as  this  title  is  merely  a  play  upon  the  element 
found  in  the  city,  Uru-azaga,  sacred  to  Bau,  not  much  stress 
is  to  be  laid  upon  this  designation.  Unfortunately,  too,  the 
elements  composing  her  name  are  not  clear,1  and  it  must  be 
borne  in  mind  that  the  reading  is  purely  provisional.  So  much, 
at  least,  seems  certain  :  that  Bau  and  Ga-sig-dug  are  two  forms 
under  which  one  and  the  same  natural  element  was  personified. 
Bau  is  called  in  the  incantation  texts,  the  mother  of  Ea.  The 
latter  being  distinctly  a  water  god,  we  may  conclude  that  in 
some  way,  Bau  is  to  be  connected  with  water  as  a  natural 
element.  The  conjecture  may  be  hazarded  that  she  personifies 
originally  the  waters  of  the  upper  realm  —  the  clouds.  Since 
Ea,  who  is  her  son,  represents  the  waters  of  the  lower  realm, 
the  relation  of  mother  and  son  reflects  perhaps  a  primitive 
conception  of  the  origin  of  the  deep,  through  the  descent  of 
the  upper  waters.  When  we  come  to  the  cosmogony  of  the 
Babylonians,  it  will  be  seen  that  this  conception  of  a  distinction 
between  the  two  realms  of  waters  is  a  fundamental  one.  This 
character  as  a  spirit  of  the  watery  elements  is  shared  by  others 
of  the  goddesses  appearing  in  the  old  Babylonian  inscriptions.2 

En-ki  or  Ea. 

This  god,  who,  as  we  shall  see,  becomes  most  prominent  in 
the  developed  form  of  Babylonian  theology,  does  not  occupy 
the  place  one  should  expect  in  the  early  Babylonian  inscriptions. 
Ur-Bau  erects  a  sanctuary  to  Ea,  at  Girsu.  Another  of  the  gov- 
ernors of  Lagash  calls  himself,  priest  of  Ea,   describing  the 

1  The  first  signifies  'to  make,'  the  third  means  "  good,  favorable,"  but  the  second, 
upon  which  so  much  depends,  is  not  clear.     Amiaud  reads  turn  instead  of  sig. 

2  E.g.,  Nina  (see  below). 


62  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

god  as  the  "  supreme  councillor."  From  him,  the  king  receives 
"wisdom."1  A  ruler,  Rim-Sin,  of  the  second  dynasty  of  Ur, 
associates  Ea  with  Bel,  declaring  that  these  "  great  gods  "  en- 
trusted Uruk  into  his  hands  with  the  injunction  to  rebuild  the 
city  that  had  fallen  in  ruins.  The  ideograms,  with  which  his 
name  is  written,  En-ki,  designate  him  as  god  of  that  '  which  is 
below,'  -  -  the  earth  in  the  first  place ;  but  with  a  more  precise 
differentiation  of  the  functions  of  the  great  gods,  Ea  becomes 
the  god  of  the  waters  of  the  deep.  When  this  stage  of  belief 
is  reached,  Ea  is  frequently  associated  with  Bel,  who,  it  will  be 
recalled,  is  the  '  god  of  the  lower  region,'  but  who  becomes  the 
god  of  earth  par  excellence.  When,  therefore,  Bel  and  Ea  are 
invoked,  it  is  equivalent,  in  modern  parlance,  to  calling  upon 
earth  and  water  ;  and  just  as  Bel  is  used  to  personify,  as  it 
were,  the  unification  of  the  earthly  forces,  so  Ea  becomes,  in  a 
comprehensive  sense,  the  watery  deep.  Ea  and  Bel  assume 
therefore  auspicious  proportions  in  the  developed  Babylonian 
cosmogony  and  theology.  In  the  cosmogony,  Bel  is  the  creator 
and  champion  of  mankind,  and  Ea  is  the  subterranean  deep 
which  surrounds  the  earth,  the  source  of  wisdom  and  culture ; 
in  the  theology,  Ea  and  Bel  are  pictured  in  the  relation  of 
father  and  son,  who,  in  concert,  are  appealed  to,  when  mis- 
fortune or  disease  overtakes  the  sons  of  man ;  Ea,  the  father, 
being  the  personification  of  knowledge,  and  Bel,  the  practical 
activity  that  '  emanates  from  wisdom,'  as  Professor  Sayce,2 
adopting  the  language  of  Gnosticism,  aptly  puts  it ;  only  that, 
as  already  suggested,  Marduk  assumes  the  role  of  the  older  Bel. 
Confining  ourselves  here  to  the  earlier  phases  of  Ea,  it  seems 
probable  that  he  was  originally  regarded  as  the  god  of  Eridu, 
—  one  of  the  most  ancient  of  the  holy  cities  of  Southern  Baby- 
lonia, now  represented  by  Abu-Shahrein,  and  which  once  stood 
on  the  shores  of  the  Persian  Gulf.      Ur-Bau  expressly  calls  the 

1  1  )c  Sarzec,  pi.  7,  col.  i.  12. 

2  ////'/>,■)/  Lectures,  p.  to.j. 


BABYLONIAN  GODS.  63 

god  the  '  king  of  Eridu.'  The  sacredness  of  the  place  is 
attested  by  Gudea,  who  boasts  of  having  made  the  temple  of 
Nin-girsu  as  sacred  as  Eridu.1  It  is  over  this  city  that  Ea 
watches.  The  importance  of  the  Persian  Gulf  to  the  growth 
of  the  city,  would  make  it  natural  to  place  the  seat  of  the  god 
in  the  waters  themselves.  The  cult  of  water-deities  arises, 
naturally,  at  places  which  are  situated  on  large  sheets  of  water; 
and  in  the  attributes  of  wisdom  which  an  older  age  ascribed  to 
Ea,  there  may  be  seen  the  embodiment  of  the  tradition  that  the 
course  of  civilization  proceeds  from  the  south.  The  superi- 
ority of  the  Persian  Gulf  over  the  other  waters  of  Babylon  — 
over  the  two  great  rivers  with  their  tributary  streams  and 
canals  —  would  be  another  factor  that  would  lead  to  the  god 
of  the  Persian  Gulf  being  regarded  as  the  personification  of 
the  watery  element  in  general.  For  the  Babylonians,  the  Per- 
sian Gulf,  stretching  out  indefinitely,  and  to  all  appearances 
one  with  the  great  ocean  whose  ulterior  shores  could  not  be 
reached,  was  the  great  '  Okeanos,'  that  flowed  around  the  earth 
and  on  which  the  earth  rested.  Ea,  accordingly  (somewhat 
like  En-lil),  was  delocalized,  as  it  were,  and  his  worship  was 
maintained  long  after  the  recollection  of  his  connection  with 
Eridu  had  all  but  disappeared.  At  the  same  time,  for  the  very 
reason  that  he  was  cut  loose  from  local  associations,  no  place 
could  lay  claim  to  being  the  seat  of  the  deity.  Ur-Bau,  when 
erecting  a  sanctuary  to  Ea  at  Girsu,  significantly  calls  the  god 
'  the  king  of  Eridu.'  The  sanctuary  is  not,  in  this  case,  the 
dwelling-place  of  the  god. 

We  are  justified,  therefore,  in  going  back  many  centuries, 
before  reaching  the  period  when  Ea  was,  merely,  the  local  god 
of  Eridu.  Whether  Ea  is  to  be  regarded  as  the  real  name  of 
the  god,  or  is  also  an  ideograph  like  En-ki,  is  again  open  to 
doubt.  If  Ea  is  the  real  pronunciation,  then  the  writing  of  the 
name  is  a  play  upon  the  character  of  the  deity,  for  it  is  com- 

1  Inscr.  B,  col.  iv.  11.  7,  8. 


64  BABYLONIAN-  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

posed  of  two  elements  that  signify  'house'  and  'water,'  -  the 
name  thus  suggesting  the  character  and  real  seat  of  the  deity. 
A  point  in  favor  of  regarding  Ea  as  the  real  name,  albeit  not 
decisive,  is  the  frequent  use  of  the  unmistakable  ideographic 
description  of  the  god  as  En-ki.  The  consort  of  Ea  who  is 
Dam-kina  does  not  appear  in  the  historical    texts  of  the  first 

period. 

The  origin  of  Babylonian  civilization  at  the  Persian  Gulf, 
together  with  the  dependence  of  Babylonia  for  her  fertility  upon 
the  streams  and  canals,  account  for  the  numerous  water-deities 
to  be  found  in  the  ancient  Babylonian  pantheon,  some  of  which 
have  already  been  discussed.  We  will  meet  with  others  further 
on.  Every  stream,  large  or  small,  having  its  special  protect- 
ing deity,  the  number  of  water-deities  naturally  increases  as 
the  land  becomes  more  and  more  dissected  by  the  canal  sys- 
tem that  conditioned  the  prosperity  of  the  country. 

Ea,  as  we  shall  see,  appears  under  an  unusually  large  num- 
ber of  names.1     One  of  these  is 


NlN-A-GAL, 

which,  signifying  '  god  of  great  strength,'  is  given  to  him  as 
the  patron  of  the  smith's  art."  A  god  of  this  name  is  men- 
tioned by  Ur-Bau,3  who  speaks  of  a  sanctuary  erected  in  honor 
of  this  deity.  But  since  the  king  refers  to  Ea  (as  En-ki)  a 
few  lines  previous,  it  would  appear  that  at  this  period  Nin-agal 
is  still  an  independent  deity.  The  later  identification  with  Ea 
appears  to  be  due  to  the  idea  of  '  strength  '  involved  in  the 
name  of  Nin-agal.  In  the  same  way,  many  of  the  names  of  Ei 
were  originally  descriptive  of  independent  gods  who,  because 
of  the   similarity  of  their  functions  to  those  of   the  great  Ea, 

1   In  Rawlinson,  ii.  58,  no.  (>,  then;  is  a  list  of  some  seventy  names. 
-  Rawlinson,  ii.  S'S-  no.  °i  58. 

a  Ue  Saizec.  pi.  S,  col.  v.  11.  4-6. 


BABYLONIAN  GODS.  65 

were  absorbed  by  the  latter.  Their  names  transferred  to  Ea, 
are  frequently  the  only  trace  left  of  their  original  independent 
existence. 

Nergal. 

Nergal,  the  local  deity  of  Cuthah  (or  Kutu),  represented  by 
the  mound  Tell-Ibrahim,  some  distance  to  the  east  of  Babylon, 
was  of  an  entirely  different  character  from  Ea,  but  his  history 
in  the  development  of  the  Babylonian  religion  is  hardly  less 
interesting.  The  first  mention  of  his  famous  temple  at  Cuthah 
is  found  in  an  inscription  of  Dungi  (to  be  read  Ba'u-ukin, 
according  to  Winckler v)  who  belongs  to  the  first  dynasty  of 
Ur  (c.  2900  b.c).  Its  origin,  however,  belongs  to  a  still  earlier 
period.  Such  was  the  fame  of  the  temple  known  as  E-shid-lam, 
and  the  closeness  of  the  connection  between  the  deity  and  his 
favorite  seat,  that  Nergal  himself  became  known  as  shid-lam-ta- 
ud-du-a,  i.e.,  the  god  that  rises  up  from  E-shid-lam.  It  is  by  this 
epithet  that  the  same  Dungi  describes  him  in  one  of  his  inscrip- 
tions.2 Down  to  the  latest  period  of  Assyro-Babylonian  history, 
Nergal  remains  identified  with  Kutu,  being  known  at  all  times 
as  the  god  of  Kutu.3  When  Sargon,  the  king  of  Assyria,  upon 
his  conquest  of  the  kingdom  of  Israel  (c.  722  b.c),  brought  peo- 
ple from  Babylon,  Cuthah,  Ava,  and  so  forth,  across  to  the  lands 
of  the  Jordan  to  take  the  place  of  the  deported  Israelites,  the 
Hebrew  narrator  (II  Kings,  xvii.  24-35)  te^s  us  ni  an  interest- 
ing manner  of  the  obnoxious  foreign  worship  which  these  people 
brought  to  the  land,  each  division  bringing  the  gods  of  their 
place  with  them.     The  men  of  Cuthah,  he  adds  (v.  30),  made  a 

1  Kcils  Bibl.  3,  1,  So,  note  3. 

2  Ravvlinson,  iv.  35,  no.  2,  1. 

3  See  a  syllabary  giving  lists  of  gods,  Rawlinson,  ii.  60,  12.  Dungi,  indeed,  calls 
Nergal  once  the  king  of  lawful  control  over  Lagash  (Rawlinson,  iv.  35,  no.  2,  11.  2,  3). 
The  exact  force  of  the  title  is  not  clear,  but  in  no  case  are  we  permitted  to  conclude 
as  Amiaud  does  (Rec.  of  the  Past,  n.  s.,  i.  59)  that  Shid-lam-ta-udda  is  identical 
with  Nin-girsu. 


66  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

statue  of  Nergal.  Singamil,  of  the  dynasty,  having  its  capital 
at  LJruk  (c.  2750  B.C.),  likewise  testifies  to  his  devotion  to 
Nergal  by  busying  himself  with  improvements  and  additions  to 
his  temple  at  Cuthah.  His  worship,  therefore,  was  not  confined 
to  those  who  happened  to  reside  at  Cuthah;  and  closely  as  he  is 
identified  with  the  place,  the  character  of  the  god  is  a  general 
and  not  a  special  one.  The  full  form  of  his  name  appears  to 
have  been  Ner-unu-gal,  of  which  Nergal,  furnished  by  the  Old 
Testament  passage  referred  to,  would  then  be  a  contraction  or 
a  somewhat  corrupt  form.  The  three  elements  composing  his 
name  signify  "  the  mighty  one  of  the  great  dwelling-place,"  but 
it  is,  again,  an  open  question  whether  this  is  a  mere  play  upon 
the  character  of  the  god,  as  in  the  name  of  Ea  (according  to 
one  of  the  interpretations  above  suggested);  or  whether  it  is  an 
ideographic  form  of  the  name.  The  Old  Testament  shows,  con- 
clusively, that  the  name  had  some  such  pronunciation  as 
Nergal.  Jensen,  from  other  evidences,  inclines  to  the  opinion 
that  the  writing  Ner-unu-gal  is  the  result  of  a  species  of  ety- 
mology, brought  about  by  the  prominence  given  to  Nergal  as 
the  god  of  the  region  of  the  dead.  It  is  in  this  capacity  that 
he  already  appears  in  the  inscription  of  Singamil,  who  calls 
him  '  king  of  the  nether  world.'  The  "great  dwelling-place," 
therefore,  is  clearly  the  dominion  over  which  Nergal  rules, 
and  when  we  come  to  the  cosmogony  of  the  Babylonians,1  it 
will  be  found  that  this  epithet  for  the  nether  world  -the  great 
dwelling-place  --  accords  with  their  conception  of  the  life  after 
death.  But  while  Nergal,  with  a  host  of  lesser  demons  about 
him,  appears  as  the  Babylonian  Pluto,  particularly  in  the 
religious  texts,  his  functions  are  not  limited  to  the  control  of 
the  dead.  He  is  the  personification  of  some  of  the  evils  that 
bring  death  to  mankind,  particularly  pestilence  and  war.  The 
death  that  follows  in  his  path  is  a  violent  one,  and  his  de- 
structive force  is  one  that  acts  upon  large   masses  rather  than 

1  See  Jensen,  Kosnt  dogie  der  Babylonier^  pp.  476-S7. 


BABYLONIAN  GODS.  67 

upon  the  individual.  I  lence,  one  of  the  most  common  ideo- 
graphs used  to  express  his  name  is  that  which  signifies  '  sword.' 

War  and  pestilence  are  intimately  associated  in  the  mind  of 
the  Babylonians.  Among  other  nations,  the  sword  is,  similarly, 
the  symbol  of  the  deity,  as  the  plague-bringer  as  well  as  the 
warrior. 

To  this  day,  a  pestilence  is  the  general  accompaniment  of  war 
in  the  East,  or  follows  in  its  wake.  Different  from  Nin-ib, 
who  is  also  a  god  of  war,  Nergal  symbolizes  more  particu- 
larly the  destruction  which  accompanies  war,  and  not  the  strong 
champion  who  aids  his  subjects  in  the  fight.  Nergal  is  essen- 
tially a  destroyer,  and  the  various  epithets  applied  to  him  in 
the  religious  texts,  show  that  he  was  viewed  in  this  light.  He 
is  at  times  the  'god  of  fire,'  again  'the  raging  king,'  'the 
violent  one'  'the  one  who  burns';  and  finally  identified  with 
the  glowing  heat  of  flame.  Often,  he  is  described  by  these  attri- 
butes, instead  of  being  called  by  his  real  name.1  Dr.  Jensen 
has  recently  shown  in  a  satisfactory  manner,  that  this  phase  of 
his  character  must  be  the  starting-point  in  tracing  the  order  of 
his  development.  As  the  'glowing  flame,'  Nergal  is  evidently 
a  phase  of  the  sun,  and  Jensen  proves  that  the  functions  and 
aspects  of  the  sun  at  different  periods  being  differentiated 
among  the  Babylonians,  Nergal  is  more  especially  the  hot  sun 
of  midsummer  or  midday,  the  destructive  force  of  which  was 
the  chief  feature  that  distinguished  it.  The  hot  sun  of  Baby- 
lonia, that  burns  with  fierce  intensity,  brings  pestilence  and 
death,  and  carries  on  a  severe  contest  against  man.  From 
being  the  cause  of  death,  it  is  but  a  step,  and  a  natural  one, 
to  make  Nergal  preside  over  the  region,  prepared  for  those 
whom  he  has  destroyed.  The  course  taken  by  Babylonian 
theology  is  responsible  for  the  prominence  given  to  the  latter 
role  of  Nergal,  which  finally  overshadows  his  other  phases  to  the 
extent  of  suggesting  the  fanciful  interpretation  of  his  name  as 

1  See  Jensen,  Kosmologic  der  Babylonier,  pp.  476-S7. 


68  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIC  ION. 

the  'ruler  of  the  great  dwelling-place  for  the  dead.'  In  the 
light  of  the  facts  set  forth,  another  explanation  for  his  name 
must  be  looked  for  that  would  connect  the  god  with  solar 
functions.  The  name  may  in  fact  be  divided  into  two  ele- 
ments, the  first  having  the  force  of  chief  or  ruler,  the  second 
'  great.'  The  combination  would  be  an  appropriate  designation 
for  the  sun,  in  the  role  of  a  destructive  power.  But  Nergal,  after 
all,  represents  only  one  phase  of  the  sun-god.  The  god  who 
was  worshipped  as  the  personification  of  the  sun  par  excellence 
and  the  sun  as  a  whole,  was 

Shamash. 

Written  with  an  ideograph  that  describes  him  as  the  '  god  of 
the  day,'  there  is  no  deity  whose  worship  enjoys  an  equally 
continued  popularity  in  Babylonia  and  Assyria.  Beginning  at 
the  earliest  period  of  Babylonian  history,  and  reaching  to  the 
latest,  his  worship  suffers  no  interruption.  Shamash,  more- 
over, maintains  his  original  character  with  scarcely  any  modifi- 
cation throughout  this  long  period.  For  all  that,  he  bears  a 
name  which  signifies  '  attendant '  or  '  servitor,'  and  which 
sufficiently  shows  the  subsidiary  position  that  he  occupied  in 
the  Babylonian  pantheon.  One  of  the  rulers  belonging  to  the 
second  dynasty  of  Ur  calls  the  sun-god,  the  offspring  of  Nannar, 
—  one  of  the  names  of  the  moon-god,  —  and  the  last  king  of 
Babylonia,  Nabonnedos,  does  the  same.  In  combination  with 
the  moon-god,  the  latter  takes  precedence  of  Shamash,1  and  in 
the  enumeration  of  the  complete  pantheon,  in  the  inscriptions 
of  both  Assyrian  and  Babylonian  kings,  the  same  order  is 
preserved.  Other  evidence  that  points  to  the  superior  rank 
accorded  to  Sin,  the  moon-god  over  the  sun-deity  in  Baby- 
lonia, is  the  reckoning  of  time  by  the  moon  phases.  The  day 
begins  with  the  evening,  and  not  with  sunrise.     The  moon,  as 

1  So  in  the  inscription  of  Rim-Sin  [Keih  Bibl.  3,  1,  p.  97). 


BABYLONIAN   GODS.  69 

the  chief  of  the  starry  firmament,  and  controlling  the  fate  of 
mankind,  was  the  main  factor  in  giving  to  the  orb  of  night,  this 
peculiar  prominence.  The  '  service,'  accordingly  implied  in  the 
name  of  Shamash  appears  to  have  been  such  as  was  demanded 
by  his  subsidiary  position  to  the  moon-god.  Beyond  the  general 
recognition,  however,  of  this  relationship  between  the  two,  it 
does  not  appear  that  the  worship  paid  to  Shamash,  was  at  all 
affected  by  the  secondary  place,  that  he  continued  to  hold  in 
the  theoretically  constructed  pantheon.  Less  than  is  the  case 
with  the  other  gods,  is  he  identified  with  any  particular  city, 
and  we  therefore  find  in  the  most  ancient  period,  two  centers  of 
Southern  Babylonia  claiming  Shamash  as  their  patron  saint,  — 
Larsa,  represented  by  the  mound  of  Senkereh,  and  Sippar, 
occupying  the  site  of  the  modern  Abu-Habba.  It  is  difficult 
to  say  which  of  the  two  was  the  older  ;  the  latter,  in  the 
course  of  time,  overshadowed  the  fame  of  the  former,  and  its 
history  can  be  traced  back  considerably  beyond  the  sun- 
worship  at  Larsa,  the  first  mention  of  which  occurs  in  the 
inscriptions  of  rulers  of  the  first  dynasty  of  Ur  {c.  2900  B.C.). 
Since  Ur,  as  we  shall  see,  was  sacred  to  the  moon-god,  it  is 
hardly  likely  that  the  Shamash  cult  was  introduced  at  Larsa  by 
the  rulers  of  Ur.  The  kings  of  Ur  would  not  have  forfeited 
the  protection  of  Sin,  by  any  manifestation  of  preference  for 
Shamash.  When  Ur-Bau,  therefore,  tells  us  that  he  '  built '  a 
temple  to  Shamash  at  Larsa,  he  must  mean,  as  Sin-iddina  of 
the  dynasty  of  Larsa  does,  in  using  the  same  phrase,  that  he 
enlarged  or  improved  the  edifice.  What  makes  it  all  the  more 
likely  that  Ur-Bau  found  sun-worship  at  Larsa  in  existence  is, 
that  in  the  various  places  over  which  this  ruler  spread  his 
building  activity,  he  is  careful  in  each  case  to  preserve  the 
status  of  the  presiding  deity.  So  at  Nippur,  he  engages  in 
work  at  the  temples  of  En-lil  and  of  Nin-lil ;  while  at  Uruk  he 
devotes  himself  to  the  temple  of  Nana.  In  thus  connecting 
their  names  with  the  various  sacred  edifices  of  Babylonia,  the 


70  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

rulers  emphasized,  on  the  one  hand,  their  control  of  the  terri- 
tory in  which  the  building  lay,  and  on  the  other,  their  allegiance 
to  the  deity  of  the  place,  whose  protection  and  favor  they  sought 
to  gain. 

The  mention  of  a  temple  to  Shamash  at  Sippar  reverts  to  a 
still  earlier  period  than  that  of  its  rival.  Nabonnedos  tells  us 
that  it  was  founded  by  Naram-Sin.  Sargon  has  put  his  name 
on  some  object1  that  he  dedicates  to  the  sun-god  at  Sippar. 
That  there  was  an  historical  connection  between  the  two 
temples  may  be  concluded  from  the  fact  that  the  name  of  the 
sacred  edifices  was  the  same  in  both,  —  E-babbara,  signifying  the 
'  house  of  lustre.'  Such  a  similarity  points  to  a  dependence 
of  one  upon  the  other,  and  the  transfer  or  extension  of  the 
worship  directly  from  one  place  to  the  other  ;  but,  as  intimated, 
we  have  no  certain  means  of  determining  which  of  the  two  is 
the  older.  In  view  of  the  general  observation  to  be  made  in 
what  pertains  to  the  religion  of  the  Babylonians,  that  fame  and 
age  go  hand  in  hand,  the  balance  is  in  favor  of  Sippar,  which 
became  by  far  the  more  famous  of  the  two,  received  a  greater 
share  of  popular  affection,  and  retained  its  prominence  to  the 
closing  days  of  the  neo-Babylonian  monarchy.  We  shall  have 
occasion  in  a  succeeding  chapter  to  trace  the  history  of  the  sun- 
temple  at  Sippar  so  far  as  known.  It  is  interesting  to  note 
that  Nabonnedos,  feeling  the  end  of  his  power  to  be'  near, 
undertakes,  as  one  of  the  last  resorts,  the  restoration  of  this 
edifice,  in  the  hope  that  by  thus  turning  once  more  to  the 
powerful  Shamash,  he  might  secure  his  protection,  in  addition 
to  that  of  Marduk,  the  head  of  the  later  Babylonian  pantheon. 

In  Ur  itself,  Shamash  was  also  worshipped  in  early  days  by 
the  side  of  the  moon-god.  Gungunu,  of  the  second  dynasty  of 
Ur  (c.  2700  B.C.),  tells  of  two  temples  erected  to  him  at  that 
place;  and  still  a  third  edifice,  sacred  to  both  Nannar  (the 
moon-god)  and  Shamash  at  Ur,  is  referred  to  by  a  king  of  the 

1  Perhaps  the  knob  of  a  sceptre,     l'roi.  Soc.  Bilil.  Arch.  viii.  68. 


BABYLONIAN  GODS.  71 

Larsa  dynasty,  Rim-Sin  (c.  2300  B.C.).  The  titles  given  to 
Shamash  by  the  early  rulers  are  sufficiently  definite  to  show 
in  what  relation  he  stood  to  his  worshippers,  and  what  the 
conceptions  were  that  were  formed  of  him.  He  is,  alternately, 
the  king  and  the  shepherd.  Since  the  kings  also  called 
themselves  shepherds,  no  especial  endearment  is  conveyed 
by  this  designation.  In  the  incantations,  Shamash  is  fre- 
quently appealed  to,  either  alone,  or  when  an  entire  group  of 
spirits  and  deities  are  enumerated.  He  is  called  upon  to  give 
life  to  the  sick  man.  To  him  the  body  of  the  one  who  is 
smitten  with  disease  is  confided.  As  the  god  of  light,  he  is 
appropriately  called  upon  to  banish  'darkness'  from  the  house, 
darkness  being  synonymous  with  misfortune  ;  and  the  appeal  is 
made  to  him  more  particularly  as  the  '  king  of  judgment.'  From 
this,  it  is  evident  that  the  beneficent  action  of  the  sun,  was  the 
phase  associated  with  Shamash.  He  was  hailed  as  the  god  that 
gives  light  and  life  to  all  things,  upon  whose  favor  the  prosperity 
of  the  fields  and  the  well-being  of  man  depend.  He  creates 
the  light  and  secures  its  blessings  for  mankind.  His  favor 
produces  order  and  stability ;  his  wrath  brings  discomfiture  and 
ruin  to  the  state  and  the  individual.  But  his  power  was,  per- 
haps,' best  expressed  by  the  title  of  "  judge  "  —  the  favorite  one 
in  the  numerous  hymns  that  were  composed  in  his  honor.  He 
was  represented  as  seated  on  a  throne  in  the  chamber  of  judg- 
ment, receiving  the  supplications  of  men,  and  according  as  he 
manifested  his  favor  or  withdrew  it,  enacting  the  part  of  the 
decider  of  fates.  He  loosens  the  bonds  of  the  imprisoned, 
grants  health  to  the  sick,  and  even  revivifies  the  dead.  On  the 
other  hand,  he  puts  an  end  to  wickedness  and  destroys  enemies. 
He  makes  the  weak  strong,  and  prevents  the  strong  from 
crushing  the  weak.  From  being  the  judge,  and,  moreover,  the 
supreme  judge  of  the  world,  it  was  but  natural  that  the  con- 
ception of  justice  was  bound  up  with  him.  His  light  became 
symbolical  of  righteousness,  and  the  absence  of  it,  or  darkness, 


72  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

was  viewed  as  wickedness.  Men  and  gods  look  expectantly 
for  his  light.  He  is  the  guide  of  the  gods,  as  well  as  the  ruler 
of  men. 

While  there  are  no  direct  indications  in  the  historical  texts 
known  at  present,  that  this  conception  of  the  sun-god  existed 
in  all  its  details  before  the  days  of  Hammurabi,  there  is  every 
reason  to  believe  that  this  was  the  case  ;  the  more  so,  in  that 
it  does  not  at  all  transcend  the  range  of  religious  ideas  that  we 
have  met  with  in  the  case  of  the  other  gods  of  this  period. 
Nor  does  this  conception  in  any  way  betray  itself,  as  being  due 
to  the  changed  political  conditions  that  set  in,  with  the  union  of 
the  states  under  Hammurabi.  Still,  the  age  of  the  religious 
texts  not  being  fixed,  it  is  thus  necessary  to  exercise  some 
caution  before  using  them  without  the  basis  of  an  allusion  in 
the  historical  texts. 

Utu. 

It  but  remains,  before  passing  on,  to  note  that  the  same 
deity  appears  under  various  names.  Among  these  are  Utu1 
and  apparently  also  Babbar  2  in  the  old  Babylonian  inscriptions. 
For  the  latter,  a  Semitic  etymology  is  forthcoming,  and  we  may 
therefore  regard  it  as  representing  a  real  pronunciation,  and 
not  an  ideographic  writing.  Babbar,  a  contracted  form  from 
Barbar,  is  the  reduplication  of  the  same  stem  bar :i  that  we  have 
already  met  with,  in  the  name  of  the  temple  sacred  to  Shamash. 
Like  E-babbara,  therefore,  Babbar  is  the  "  brilliantly  shining 
one,"  -  a  most  appropriate  name  for  the  sun,  and  one  frequently 
applied  to  him  in  the  religious  texts.  As  to  Utu,  there  is  some 
doubt  whether  it  represents  a  real  pronunciation  or  not.  My 
own  opinion  is  that  it  does,  and   that  the  underlying  stem  is 

1  E.g.,  Hammurabi  (Revue  d' Assyriologie,  ii.  col.  i.  21)  ;  but  also  Gudea  and  a 
still  earlier  king. 

-  So  Amiaud;  and  there  seems  some  reason  to  believe  that  the  name  was  used  by 
the  side  hi  Utu,  though  perhaps  only  as  an  epithet. 

:i  Compare  birbiru,  '  sheen,'  and  the  stem  baru,  'to  see,'  etc. 


BABYLONIAN  GODS.  73 

atii,  which  in  Babylonian  has  almost  the  same  meaning  as  bar 
or  ba?-fi,  viz.,  'to  see.'  '  Utu  '  would  thus  again  designate  the 
sun  as  'that  which  shines  forth.' 

It  will  be  recalled,  that  other  instances  have  been  noted  of 
the  same  god  appearing  under  different  names.  The  most 
natural  explanation  for  this  phenomenon  is,  that  the  variation 
corresponds  to  the  different  localities  where  the  god  was  wor- 
shipped. The  identification  would  not  be  made  until  the  union 
of  the  various  Babylonian  states  had  been  achieved.  Such  a 
union  would  be  a  potent  factor  in  systematizing  the  pantheon. 
When  once  it  was  recognized  that  the  various  names  repre- 
sented, in  reality,  one  and  the  same  deity,  it  would  not  be  long 
before  the  name,  peculiar  to  the  place  where  the  worship  was 
most  prominent,  would  set  the  others  aside  or  reduce  them  to 
mere  epithets. 

It  may  well  be  that  Shamash  was  the  name  given  to  the  god 
at  Sippar,  whereas  at  Ur  he  may  have  been  known  as  Utu. 
Ur-Bau  (of  the  first  Ur  dynasty)  calls  him  Utu  also,  when 
speaking  of  the  temple  at  Larsa,  but  it  would  be  natural  for 
the  kings  of  Ur  to  call  the  sun-god  of  Larsa  by  the  same  name 
that  he  had  in  Ur.  That  Hammurabi,  however,  calls  the  sun- 
god  of  Larsa,  Utu,  may  be  taken  as  an  indication  that,  as 
such  he  was  known  at  that  place,  for  since  we  have  no  record 
of  a  sun-temple  at  Babylon  in  these  days,  there  would  be  no 
motive  that  might  induce  him  to  transfer  a  name,  otherwise 
known  to  him,  to  another  place.  The  testimony  of  Hammurabi 
is  therefore  as  direct  as  that  of  Sargon,  who  calls  the  sun-god 
of  Sippar,  Shamash.  It  is  not  always  possible  to  determine, 
with  as  much  show  of  probability,  as  in  the  case  of  the  sun-god, 
the  distribution  of  the  various  names,  but  the  general  conclusion, 
for  all  that,  is  warranted  in  every  instance,  that  a  variety  of 
names  refers,  originally,  to  an  equal  variety  of  places  over  which 
the  worship  was  spread,  —  only  that  care  must  be  exercised  to 
distinguish  between  distinctive  names  and  mere  epithets. 


74  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 


A  OR   Malkatu. 

A  consort  of  the  sun-deity,  appearing  frequently  at  his  side  in 
the  incantation  texts,  is  A.  It  is  more  particularly  with  the 
Shamash  of  Sippar,  that  A  is  associated.  She  is  simply  the 
'  beloved  one '  of  the  sun-deity,  with  no  special  character  of  her 
own.  In  the  historical  texts,  her  role  is  quite  insignificant,  and 
for  the  period  with  which  we  are  at  present  concerned  she  is 
only  mentioned  once  by  a  North  Babylonian  ruler,  Ma-an-ish- 
tu-su,1  who  dedicates  an  object  to  her.  The  reading  of  the 
ideogram  A,  or  Nin-A  (i.e.,  Lady  A),  is  doubtful.  Malkatu 
("  mistress  "  or  "  queen  ")  is  offered  as  a  plausible  conjecture.2 
Lehman  (Keils  Bib/,  iii.  i,  202)  suggests  A-ja,  but  on  insufficient 
grounds.  In  any  case  A  has  the  force  of  mistress,  and  Nin-A 
simply  designates  the  goddess  as  the  lady,  mistress,  or  queen. 
It  is  likely  that  A  was  originally  an  independent  deity,  and  one 
of  the  names  of  the  sun-god  in  a  particular  locality.  It 
occurs  in  proper  names  as  a  title  of  Shamash.  Instead,  how- 
ever, of  becoming  identified  with  Shamash,  A  degenerated 
into  a  pale  reflection  of  Shamash,  pictured  under  the  relation- 
ship of  consort  to  him.  This  may  have  been  clue  to  the  union 
of  Shamash  with  the  place  where  A  was  worshipped.  If,  as 
seems  likely,  that  near  Sippar,  there  was  another  city  on  the 
other  side  of  the  Euphrates,  forming  a  suburb  to  it  (as  Borsippai 
did  to  Dabylon),  the  conclusion  is  perhaps  warranted  that  A 
was  originally  the  sun-god  worshipped  at  the  place  which 
afterwards  became  incorporated  with  Sippar.3  Such  an  amal- 
gamation  of  two  originally  male  deities  into  a  combination  of 


1  See  Keils  Bibl.  t,.  i,  mo.     Reading  of  name  uncertain. 

2  Suggested  by  Rawlinson,ii.  ^;.  10.     See  Schrader,   '/.cits.  f.  Assyr.  iii.  33  seq. 

3  On  Sippar,  sec  Sayce,  Hibbert  Lectures,  etc.,  168-169,  xvl"'  lm,ls  '"  tlu'  '  "'' 
Testament  form  "  Sepharvayim  "  a  trace  of  this  double  Sippar.  Dr.  Ward's  sugges- 
tion, however,  in  regard  to  Anbar,  ;is  representing  this  '  second '  Sippar,  is  erroneous. 


BABYLONIAN  GODS.  75 

male  and  female,  strange  as  it  may  seem  to  us,  is  in  keeping 
with  the  lack  of  sharp  distinction  between  male  and  female  in 
the  oldest  forms  of  Semitic  religions.  In  the  old  cuneiform 
writing  the  same  sign  is  used  to  indicate  "lord"  or  "  lady  " 
when  attached  to  deities.  Ishtar  appears  among  Semites  both 
as  a  male1  and  as  a  female  deity.  Sex  was  primarily  a  ques- 
tion of  strength.  The  stronger  god  was  viewed  as  masculine ; 
the  weaker  as  feminine. 

Nannar  and  Sin. 

Nannar,  a  reduplicated  form  like  Babbar,  with  the  assimilation 
of  the  first  r  to  n  (nar-nar  =  nannar),  has  very  much  the  same 
meaning  as  Babbar.  The  latter,  as  we  have  seen,  is  the  "  lus- 
trous one,"  the  former,  the  "one  that  furnishes  light."  The 
similarity  in  meaning  is  in  keeping  with  the  similarity  of  func- 
tion of  the  two  deities,  thus  named:  Babbar  being  the  sun  and 
Nannar,  the  moon.  It  was  under  the  name  of  Nannar  that  the 
moon-god  was  worshipped  at  Ur,  the  most  famous  and  proba- 
bly the  oldest  of  the  cities  over  which  the  moon-god  presided. 
The  association  of  Nannar  with  Ur  is  parallel  to  that  of  Sha- 
mash  with  Sippar,  —  not  that  the  moon-god's  jurisdiction  or 
worship  was  confined  to  that  place,  but  that  the  worship  of 
the  deity  of  that  place  eclipsed  others,  and  the  fame  and 
importance  at  Ur  led  to  the  overshadowing  of  the  moon- 
worship  there,  over  the  obeisance  to  him  paid  elsewhere. 

What  further  motives  led  to  the  choice  of  the  moon-god  as 
the  patron  of  Ur,  lies  beyond  the  scope  of  our  knowledge. 
Due  allowance  must  be  made  for  that  natural  selection,  which 
takes  place  in  the  realm  of  thought  as  much  as  in  the  domain 
of  nature.  Attention  has  already  been  called  to  the  predomi- 
nance given   by  the   Babylonians  to   the  moon  over  the  sun. 

1  E.g.,  in  Southern  Arabia.  See  W.  Robertson  Smith,  The  Religion  of  the 
Semites,  i.  59. 


76  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

The  latter  is  expressly  called  the  "  offspring  of  the  lord  of 
brilliant  beginning,"  that  is,  the  moon-god  (Delitzsch,  Assyr. 
lIJw.,  p.  234  a).  It  is  needless,  therefore,  to  do  more,  at 
this  place,  than  to  emphasize  the  fact  anew.  The  moon  serving 
much  more  as  a  guide  to  man,  through  the  regular  character 
of  its  constant  changes,  than  the  sun,  was  connected  in  the 
religious  system  with  both  the  heavenly  and  the  terrestrial 
forces.  In  view  of  Nannar's  position  in  the  heavens,  he 
was  called  the  "  heifer  of  Anu."  Ami,  it  will  be  recalled,  was 
the  god  of  heaven  (and  heaven  itself),  while  the  "  heifer  "  '  is 
here  used  metaphorically  for  offspring,  the  picture  being  sug- 
gested probably  by  the  "horn  "  that  the  moon  presents  at  a 
certain  phase.  This  '  horn  '  constitutes  his  crown,  and  he  is 
frequently  represented  on  seal  cylinders  with  a  crescent  over 
his  head,  and  with  a  long  Mowing  beard,  that  is  described  as 
having  the  color  of  lapislazuli.  A  frequent  title  is  the  '  lord 
of  the  crown.'  On  the  other  hand,  by  virtue  of  its  influence 
on  the  earth,  regulating,  as  the  ancients  observed,  the  tides, 
the  moon  was  connected  by  the  Babylonians  with  the  reckon- 
ing of  time.  Because  of  this  connection  with  the  '  lower  world,' 
it  seems,  he  was  also  regarded  as  the  first-born  of  Bel.  His 
sacred  edifice  at  Ur  was  one  to  which  all  rulers  of  the  place 
devoted  themselves.  Ur-Bau,  Nur-Ramman,  Sin-iddina,  and 
Kudur-mabuk  tell  of  their  embellishment  of  the  temple,  each 
one  appropriating  to  himself  the  title  of  'builder,'  in  which 
they  gloried.  So  close,  again,  was  the  identification  of  the  city 
with  the  deity,  that  the  latter  was  frequently  known  simply  as 
the  god  of  Ur,  and  the  former,  as  the  city  of  Nannar. 

Another  name  of  the  moon-god  was  Sin,- — the  meaning  of 
which  escapes  us.  At  the  side  of  Ur,  Harran  is  the  place  most 
celebrated  by  reason  of  its  moon-worship,  and  there  is  every 
reason  to  believe  that   the  name  Sin  was  originally  attached  to 

1   In   Rabbinical  literature,  the  moon  is  compared  to  a  'heifer'  (Talmud  Babli 

Rush  hashana  22  /■). 


BABYLONIAN   GODS.  11 

Harran.  The  migrations  of  the  ancient  Hebrews  were  con- 
nected as  we  now  know  with  political  movements  in  Babylonia. 
They  proceed  from  Ur  —  or  Ur-Kasdim,  i.e.,  Chaldean  Ur  — 
northward  to  Harran,  which,  by  virtue  of  its  position,  became  a 
town  of  much  importance.  This  association  of  Ur  with  Harran 
furnishes  an  indication  for  historical  relations  of  some  sort, 
existing  between  the  two  places.  It  is  therefore  not  accidental, 
that  the  patron  deity  of  both  places  was  the  same.  As  yet,  no 
excavations  have  been  made  at  Harran,  and  we  are,  therefore, 
dependent  upon  incidental  notices  for  our  knowledge  of  its  his- 
tory. These  sufficiently  show  that  the  place  continued  through 
a  long  period  to  preserve  its  sacred  character.  The  old  temple 
there,  was  one  of  the  many  that  stirred  up  the  religious  zeal  of 
Nabonnedos ;  and  previous  to  this,  we  find  several  Assyrian 
kings  occupied  in  embellishing  and  restoring  the  structure.  An 
interesting  reference  to  Harran,  bearing  witness  to  its  ancient 
dignity,  is  found  in  an  inscription  of  Sargon  II.  of  Assyria 
(722-706  B.C.),  who  enumerates  among  his  claims  to  the  favor 
of  the  gods,  that  he  restored  the  "  laws  and  customs  of  Harran,'' 
by  which  he  evidently  means  that  he  was  instrumental  in  giv- 
ing the  place,  the  dignity  it  once  enjoyed.  A  curious  feature 
connected  with  Sin,  is  the  occurrence  of  the  name  in  Mount 
Sinai,  in  the  wilderness  of  Sin,  as  well  as  in  an  inscription  of 
Southern  Arabia.  May  not  this  be  a  further  testimony  to  the 
association  of  Harran  with  Sin,  since  it  is  from  Harran  that 
the  departure  of  the  Hebrews  for  the  west  took  place  ?  What 
more  natural  than  that  in  the  migrations  which  carried  the 
Hebrews  to  the  west,  the  worship  of  Sin  should  have  been 
transferred  to  Arabia?  1  Important  as  Ur  and  Harran  are  as 
sacred  towns,  politically  they  do  not  retain  their  prominence 
after  the  days  of  Hammurabi.     The  amalgamation  of  Nannar 

1  That  the  name  of  Sin  should  have  been  introduced  into  Mesopotamia  through 
the  'Arabic'  dynasty  (see  above,  p.  39)  is  less  probable,  though  not  impossible  in 
the  light  of  recent  discoveries. 


78  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

with  Sin,  and  the  almost  exclusive  occurrence  of  the  latter 
name  in  later  times,  does  not  of  necessity  point  to  a  prepon- 
derating influence  of  Harran  over  Ur,  but  may  be  clue  to  the 
greater  fame  which  the  former  place  acquired  as  the  goal  of  reli- 
gious pilgrimages.  The  situation  of  Harran  —  the  name  itself 
signifies  '  road  '  —  as  the  highway  leading  to  the  west,  must 
have  been  an  important  factor,  in  bringing  this  about.  How- 
ever this  may  be,  Sin  and  Nannar  are  as  thoroughly  identical 
in  the  period  following  Hammurabi,  as  Babbar  and  Shamash. 
The  attributes  of  the  one  are  transferred  to  the  other  so  com- 
pletely, that  a  separation  of  the  two  is  no  longer  possible. 

The  ideographs  with  which  the  name  of  Sin  is  written  show 
him  to  have  been  regarded  as  the  god  of  wisdom,  but  while 
wisdom  and  light  may  be  connected,  it  is  Nannar's  character  as 
the  "  illuminator  "  that  becomes  the  chief  trait  of  the  god.  No 
doubt  the  preeminence  of  Ea  in  this  respect,  who  is  the  per- 
sonification of  wisdom,  par  excellence,  made  it  superfluous  to 
have  another  deity  possessing  the  same  trait.  It  is,  accord- 
ingly, as  the  god  of  light,  that  Sin  continues  to  be  adored  in  the 
Babylonian  religion  ;  and  when  he  is  referred  to,  in  the  historical 
texts  and  hymns,  this  side  of  his  nature  is  the  one  dwelt  upon. 
Through  his  light,  the  traps  laid  by  the  evil  spirits,  who  are 
active  at  night,  are  revealed.  In  later  times,  apparently  through 
Assyrian  influence,  the  reckoning  of  time  was  altered  to  the 
extent  of  making  the  day  begin  with  sunrise,  instead  of  with  the 
approach  of  night  ;  and  this,  together  with  the  accommodation 
of  the  lunar  cycle  to  the  movements  of  the  sun,  brought  about 
a  partial  change  of  the  former  conditions,  and  gave  somewhat 
greater  prominence  to  Shamash.  As  a  consequence,  the  role 
of  Sin  is  not  as  prominent  in  the  hymns  that  belong  to  a  later 
period  as  in  those  of  earlier  days. 

The  oracles  of  the  Assyrian  kings  are  addressed  to  Shamash, 
and  not  to  Sin.  Moreover,  the  personal  factor  in  the  case  of 
Sin,  if  one   may  express   oneself    thus,    is  not   as   strong  as    in 


BABYLON  I  AX   GODS.  79 

that  of  some  other  gods.  His  traits  are  of  a  more  general 
kind.  He  is  supreme  ;  there  is  none  like  him,  and  the  spirits 
are  subservient  to  his  will.  But  terms  of  endearment  are  few, 
while  on  the  mythological  side,  comparatively  little  is  made  of 
him.  He  is  strong  and  he  is  holy.  He  is  called  upon  to  clothe 
the  evil-doer  with  leprosy,  as  with  a  dress.  In  a  robe,  befitting 
his  dignity,  he  stalks  about.  Without  him,  no  city  is  founded,  no 
district  restored  to  former  glory.  Sin  is  called  the  father  of  the 
gods,  but  in  a  metaphorical  rather  than  in  a  real  sense.  The 
only  one  of  his  children  who  takes  an  important  part  in  the  later 
phases  of  Babylonian-Assyrian  worship  is  his  daughter  Ishtar. 
She  seems  to  have  taken  to  herself  some  of  the  traits  of  right 
belonging  to  Sin,  and  the  prominence  of  her  worship  may 
be  regarded  as  an  additional  factor  in  accounting  for  the 
comparative  obscurity  to  which  Sin  gradually  is  assigned.  At 
all  events,  Sin  is  a  feature  of  the  earlier  period  of  the  Baby- 
lonian religion  rather  than  of  the  later  periods. 

NlNNI    OR    INNANNA. 

The  secondary  position  held  by  the  female  deities  in  the 
Babylonian  pantheon  has  been  repeatedly  referred  to.  This 
trait  of  the  religion  finds  an  illustration  not  only  in  the 
'  shadowy '  character  of  the  consorts  of  the  gods,  but  also  in 
the  manner  in  which  goddesses,  originally  distinct  from  one 
another  and  enjoying  an  existence  independent  of  any  male 
consort,  lose  their  individuality,  as  it  were,  and  become  merely 
so  many  forms  of  one  and  the  same  deity.  Indeed,  as  we 
approach  the  moment  when  the  gods  of  the  Babylonian 
pantheon  are  ranged  into  a  system,  the  tendency  becomes 
pronounced  to  recognize  only  one  goddess,  representative  of 
the  principle  of  generation  —  one  'great  mother,'  endowed  with 
a  variety  of  traits  according  to  the  political  and  social  con- 
ditions prevailing  at  different  times  in  Babylonia  and  Assyria. 


SO  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

In  the  earliest  period  which  we  are  now  considering,  we  can 
still  distinguish  a  number  of  goddesses  who  afterwards  became 
merged  into  this  one  great  goddess.  These  are  Ninni  (or 
Innanna),  Nana,  and  Anunit. 

Ninni  and  Innanna  are  names  that  appear  to  have  a  common 
origin.1  Both  embody  the  notion  of  'ladyship.'  The  worship 
of  this  goddess  centers  in  the  district  of  Lagash.  Ur-Bau 
(c.  3000  B.C.),  who  addresses  her  as  'glorious  and  supreme,' 
builds  a  temple  in  her  honor  at  Gishgalla,  and  Gudea  refers  to 
a  temple  known  as  E-anna,  i.e.,  heavenly  house  in  Girsu.'2  For 
Gudea,  Ninni  is  the  "  mistress  of  the  world."  Another  ruler 
of  Lagash  whose  name  is  doubtfully  read  as  E-dingir-ra-na-gin,8 
but  who  is  even  earlier  than  Ur-Bau,  declares  that  he  has  been 
'  called '  by  Innanna  to  the  throne.  She  is  mentioned  by  the 
side  of  Nin-khar-sag.  We  are  still  in  the  period  where  local 
associations  formed  a  controlling  factor  in  ensuring  the  popu- 
larity of  a  deity,  and  while  the  goddesses  attached  to  the  gods 
of  the  important  centers  are  still  differentiated,  the  tendency 
already  exists  to  designate  the  female  consorts  simply  as  the 
'goddess,'  -  -to  apply  to  all,  the  traits  that  may  once  have  been 
peculiar  to  one.  As  we  pass  from  one  age  to  the  other,  there  is 
an  increasing  difficulty  in  keeping  the  various  local  '  goddesses ' 
apart.  Even  the  names  become  interchangeable  ;  and  since 
these  goddesses  all  represented  essentially  the  same  principle 
of  generation  and  fertility,  it  was  natural  that  with  the  union 
of  the  Babylonian  states  they  should  become  merged  into  one 
great  mother-goddess.  A  '  local '  goddess  who  retains  rather 
more  of  her  individuality  than  others,  is 

1  Innanna  may  be  separated  into  /«=lord  or  lady,  and  nanna;  in  and  nanna 
would  then  be  elements  added  to  "lady,"  conveying  perhaps  the  idea  of  greatness. 
See  fensen's  remarks,  Kcih  Bibl.  3,  1,  20,  note  4. 

-  Rec.  of  the  Past,  n.s.,  ii.  p.  104. 

;i  Keils  Bibl.  3,  1,  16.     See  fensen's  note  on  the  reading  <>i  the  name. 


BABYLONIAN  GODS.  81 


Nana. 

Her  name  is  again  playfully  interpreted  by  the  Babylonians 
—  through  association  with  Nin  —  as  .'the  lady'  par  excellence. 
She  was  the  chief  goddess  of  the  city  of  Uruk.  Her  temple  at 
Uruk  is  first  mentioned  by  Ur-Gur,  of  the  first  dynasty  of 
Ur.  It  is  restored  and  enlarged  by  Dungi,  the  successor  of 
Ur-Bau,  and  so  thoroughly  is  she  identified  with  her  edifice 
known  as  E-anna  (again  a  play  upon  her  name),  that  she 
becomes  known  as  the  Lady  of  E-anna.1  She  appears  to  have 
had  a  temple  also  at  Ur,  and  it  is  to  this  edifice  that  later 
rulers  of  Larsa — Kudur-Mabuk  and  Rim-Sin,  as  well  as  the 
kings  of  the  Isin  dynasty,  Gamil-Ninib,  Libit-Ishtar,  and  Ishme- 
Dagan  —  refer  in  their  inscriptions. 

The  members  of  the  Isin  dynasty  pride  themselves  upon 
their  control  over  Uruk,  and  naturally  appear  as  special  devo- 
tees to  Nana,  whose  chosen  "consort"  they  declare  them- 
selves to  be,  wielding  the  sceptre,  as  it  were,  in  union  with  her. 
Already  at  this  period,  Nana  is  brought  into  connection  with  the 
moon-god,  being  called  by  Kudur-Mabuk  the  daughter  of  Sin. 
The  relationship  in  this  case  indicates,  primarily,  the  supremacy 
exercised  by  Ur,  and  also  a  similarity  in  the  traits  of  the  two 
deities.  In  the  fully  developed  cosmology,  Nana  is  the  planet 
Venus,  whose  various  aspects,  as  morning  and  evening  star, 
suggested  an  analogy  with  the  phases  of  the  moon. 

Venus,  like  the  moon,  served  as  a  guide  to  man,  while  her 
inferiority  in  size  and  importance  to  the  former,  would  natu- 
rally come  to  be  expressed  under  the  picture  of  father  and 
daughter.  In  a  certain  sense,  all  the  planets  appearing  at  the 
same  time  and  in  the  same  region  with  the  moon  were  the 
children   of  the  latter.      Sin,  therefore,  is   appropriately  called 

1  The  fame  of  this  temple  outlasts  the  political  importance  of  the  place,  and  as 
late  as  the  days  of  the  Assyrian  monarchy  is  an  object  of  fostering  care  on  the  part 
of  the  kings. 


82  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

the  father  of  gods,  just  as  Ami,  the  personification  of  the 
heaven  itself,  is  the  supreme  father  of  Sin  and  Shamash,  and 
of  all  the  heavenly  bodies.  The  metaphorical  application  of 
'father'  as  'source,'  throughout  Oriental  parlance,  must  be 
kept  in  mind  in  interpreting  the  relationship  between  the 
gods.  Still  another  name  of  the  goddess  is  Anunit,  which 
appears  to  have  been  peculiar  to  the  North  Babylonian  city 
Agade,  and  emphasizes  her  descent  from  "Ami,"  the  god  of 
heaven.  Her  temple  at  Agade,  known  as  E-ul-mash,  is  the 
object  of  Sargon's  devotion,  which  makes  her,  with  Bel  and 
Shamash,  the  oldest  triad  of  gods  mentioned  in  the  Babylonian 
inscriptions.     But  the  name  which  finally  displaces  all  others,  is 

ISHTAR. 

Where  the  name  originated  has  not  yet  been  ascertained,  as 
little  as  its  etymology,1  but  it  seems  to  belong  to  Northern 
Babylonia  rather  than  to  the  south. 

In  time,  all  the  names  that  we  have  been  considering  — 
Ninni,  Nana,  and  Anunit  —  became  merely  so  many  designa- 
tions of  Ishtar.  She  absorbs  the  titles  and  qualities  of  all,  and 
the  tendency  which  we  have  pointed  out  finds  its  final  outcome 
in  the  recognition  of  Ishtar  as  the  one  and  only  goddess 
endowed  with  powers  and  an  existence  independent  of  associa- 
tion with  any  male  deity,  though  even  this  independence  does 
not  hinder  her  from  being  named  at  times  as  the  associate  of 
the  chief  god  of  Assyria  —  the  all-powerful  Ashur.  The  attempt 
has  been  made  by  Sayce  and  others  to  divide  the  various 
names  of  Ishtar  among  the  aspects  of  Venus  as  morning 
and  evening  star,  but   there  is  no  evidence   to   show   that   the 

1  That  tlir  ii. line  is  Semitic  is  no  longer  seriously  questioned  by  any  scholar. 
The  underlying  stem  suggests  etymological  relationship  with  the  god  Ashur.  If 
this  be  so.  [shtai  tnaj  mean 'the  goddess  that  brings  blessing '  to  mankind,  but  all 

this  is  tentative,  as  are  the  numerous  other  etymologies  suggested. 


BABYLONIAN  CODS.  S3 

Babylonians  distinguished  the  one  from  the  other  so  sharply 
as  to  make  two  goddesses  of  one  and  the  same  planet. 

It  is  more  in  accord  with  what,  as  we  have  seen,  has  been 
the  general  character  of  the  Babylonian  pantheon,  to  account 
for  the  identification  of  Ninni,  Nana,  and  Anunit  with  Ishtar 
on  the  supposition  that  the  different  names  belonged  origi- 
nally to  different  localities.  Ishtar  was  appropriately  denomi- 
nated the  brilliant  goddess.  She  is  addressed  as  the  mother 
of  gods,  which  signals  her  supreme  position  among  the 
female  deities.  'The  mistress  of  countries'  alternating  with 
'the  mistress  of  mountains,'1  is  one  of  her  common  titles; 
and  as  the  growing  uniqueness  of  her  position  is  one  of  the 
features  of  the  Babylonian-Assyrian  religion,  it  is  natural  that 
she  should  become  simply  the  goddess.  This  was  especially 
the  case  with  the  Assyrians,  to  whom  Ishtar  became  a  god- 
dess of  war  and  battle,  the  consort,  at  times,  of  the  chief  god 
of  the  Assyrian  pantheon.  At  the  same  time  it  is  important 
to  note  that  the  warlike  character  of  the  goddess  goes  back 
to  the  time  of  Hammurabi  (Keils  Bibl.  3,  1,  113),  and  is  dwelt 
upon  by  other  Babylonian  kings  (e.g.,  Nebuchadnezzar  I.,  c.  1130 
B.C.)  prior  to  the  rise  of  the  Assyrian  power.  How  Ishtar 
came  to  take  on  so  violent  a  character  is  not  altogether  clear. 
There  are  no  indications  of  this  role  in  the  incantation  texts, 
where  she  is  simply  the  kind  mother  who  is  appealed  to,  to 
release  the  sufferer  from  the  power  of  the  disease-bringing 
spirits.  In  the  prayers,  as  will  be  shown  in  the  proper  place, 
she  becomes  the  vehicle  for  the  expression  of  the  highest 
religious  and  ethical  thought  attained  by  the  Babylonians.  On 
the  other  hand,  in  the  great  Babylonian  epic,2  dealing  with 
the  adventure's  of  a  hero,  Izdubar  (or  Gilgamesh),  Ishtar,  who 

1  The  ideographs  for  'country'  and  'mountain'  are  identical  Assyrian.  The 
alternation  in  the  title  of  Ishtar  must  not  be  taken  to  point  to  a  mountainous  origin 
of  the  goddess. 

2  A  full  account  of  this  epic  will  be  given  at  its  proper  place. 


84  BA  B  )  I.  ONI  AN  A  SS )  rR  I  A  N  RF.L  IGfON. 

makes  her  appearance  at  the  summer  solstice,  is  a  raging  god- 
dess who  smites  those  who  disobey  her  commands  with  wasting 
disease.  Starting  with  this  phase  of  the  goddess'  character, 
one  can  at  least  understand  the  process  of  her  further  develop- 
ment into  a  fierce  deity  presiding  over  the  fortunes  of  war. 
The  epic  just  referred  to  belongs  to  the  old  Babylonian  period. 
It  embodies  ancient  traditions  of  rivalry  between  the  Babylo- 
nian principalities,  though  there  are  traces  of  several  recastings 
which  the  epic  received.  The  violent  Ishtar,  therefore,  is  a 
type  going  back  to  the  same  period  as  the  other  side  of  her 
character  that  is  emphasized  elsewhere.  Since,  moreover,  the 
Ishtar  in  the  Izdubar  epic  is  none  other  than  the  chief  goddess 
of  Uruk,  all  further  doubt  as  to  the  union  of  such  diverging 
traits  in  one  and  the  same  personage  falls  to  the  ground. 
In  this  same  epic,  Ishtar  appears  as  sympathizing  with  the 
sufferings  of  mankind,  and  bewailing  the  destruction  that 
was  at  one  time  decreed  by  the  gods.  It  is  noteworthy 
that  the  violent  Ishtar  appears  in  that  portion  of  the  epic 
which,  on  the  assumption  of  a  zodiacal  interpretation  for  the 
composition,  corresponds  to  the  summer  solstice,  whereas,  the 
destruction  which  arouses  her  sympathy  takes  place  in  the 
eleventh  month.  It  is  quite  possible,  therefore,  that  the  two 
aspects  of  Venus,  as  evening  and  morning  stars,  corresponding, 
as  they  do,  to  the  summer  and  winter  seasons,  are  reflected  in 
this  double  character  of  the  goddess.  We  are  not  justified, 
however,  in  going  further  and  assuming  that  her  double  role  as 
daughter  of  Sin  and  daughter  of  Ann  is  to  be  accounted  for  in 
the  same  manner.  In  the  Izdubar  epic,  she  is  found  in  associ- 
ation with  Anu,  and  to  the  latter  she  appeals  for  protection  as 
her  father,  and  yet  it  is  as  the  daughter  of  Sin  that  she  enters 
the  world  of  the  dead  to  seek  for  the  waters  that  may  heal  her 
bridegroom,    Tammuz.1       Evidently,    the     distinction    between 

1  Again,  in  the  incantation  texts  she  appears  only  as  the  daughter  of  Anu,  coordi- 
nate with  Sin  and  Shamash, 


BABYLONIAN   GODS.  85 

Ishtar  as  the  daughter  of  Ann  and  as  the  daughter  of  Sin  is  not 
an  important  one,  the  term  daughter  in  both  cases  being  a 
metaphor  to  express  a  relationship  both  of  physical  nature  and 
of  a  political  character.  Of  the  various  forms  under  which  the 
goddess  appears,  that  of  Anunit  —  a  feminine  form  indicating 
descent  from  and  appertaining  to  Anu — attaches  itself  most 
clearly  to  the  god  of  heaven,  and  it  may  be  that  it  was  not 
until  the  assimilation  of  Anunit  and  Nana  with  Ishtar  that  the 
goddess  is  viewed  as  at  once  the  daughter  of  Anu  and  of  Sin. 
If  this  be  so,  there  is  surely  nothing  strange  in  the  fact  that  a 
planet  like  Venus  should  be  regarded  in  one  place  as  the 
daughter  of  heaven  and  in  another  brought  into  relationship 
with  the  moon.     She  actually  belongs  to  both. 

Just  as  in  Babylonia,  so  in  Assyria,  there  were  various 
Ishtars,  or  rather  various  places  where  the  goddess  was  wor- 
shipped as  the  guardian  spirit,  but  her  role  in  the  north  is  so 
peculiar  that  all  further  consideration  of  it  must  be  postponed 
until  we  come  to  consider,  in  due  time,  the  Assyrian  pantheon. 
There  will  be  occasion,  too,  when  treating  of  the  Izdubar  epic, 
to  dwell  still  further  on  some  of  her  traits.  All  that  need  be 
said  here  is  to  emphasize  the  fact  that  the  popularity  of  the 
Babylonian  Ishtar  in  Assyria,  as  manifested  by  Esarhaddon's 
zeal  in  restoring  her  temple  at  Uruk,  and  Ashurbanabal's  restora- 
tion of  Nana's  statue  (c.  635  B.C.)  which  had  been  captured  by 
the  Elamites  1635  years  before  Ashurbanabal's  reign,  is  largely 
due  to  the  effected  identity  with  the  goddess  who,  for  the 
Assyrians,  was  regarded  chiefly  as  the  goddess  of  war  and 
strife.  In  worshipping  the  southern  Ishtars,  the  Assyrian  kings 
felt  themselves  to  be  showing  their  allegiance  to  the  same  deity 
to  whom,  next  to  Ashur,  most  of  their  supplications  were 
addressed,  and   of    whom    as    warriors    they  stood   in   dread. 


S6  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 


Nina. 

A  goddess  who,  while  sharing  the  fate  of  her  sister  god- 
desses in  being  overshadowed  by  Ishtar,  yet  merits  a  special 
treatment,  is  one  whose  name  is  plausibly  conjectured  to  be 
read  Nina.  The  compound  ideogram  expressing  the  deity 
signifies  'house  of  the  fish.'  The  word  'house'  in  Semitic 
parlance  is  figuratively  extended  to  convey  the  idea  of 
'  possessing  or  harboring.'  Applied  to  a  settlement,  the  ideo- 
gram would  be  the  equivalent  of  our  '  Fishtown.'  It  is  with 
this  same  ideogram  that  the  famous  capitol  of  Assyria, 
Nineveh,  is  written  in  the  cuneiform  texts,  and  since  the 
phonetic  reading  for  the  city,  Ni-na-a,  also  occurs,  it  is  only 
legitimate  to  conclude  that  the  latter  is  the  correct  reading  for 
the  deity  as  well.  As  a  matter  of  course,  if  the  goddess  bears 
a  name  identical  with  that  of  a  city,  it  cannot  be  the  Assyrian 
city  which  is  meant  in  the  old  Babylonian  inscriptions,  but 
some  other  place  bearing  the  same  name.  Such  a  place 
actually  occurs  in  the  inscriptions  of  Gudea.  It  is,  in  fact, 
one  of  the  three  towns  that  combined  with  Shirpurla  to  create 
the  great  capitol  bearing  the  latter  name;  and  Jensen1  has 
called  attention  to  a  passage  in  one  of  Gudea's  inscriptions  in 
which  the  goddess  is  brought  into  direct  association  with  the 
town-,  so  that  it  would  appear  that  Nina  is  the  patron  of  Nina, 
in  the  same  way  that  Nin-girsu  is  the  protector  of  Girsu.  In  keep- 
ing with  this  we  find  the  mention  of  the  goddess  limited  to  the 
rulers  of  Lagash.  Several  of  them  —  En-anna-tuma,  Entemena, 
and  Gudea  -declare  themselves  to  have  been  chosen  by  her. 
She  is  said  to  regard  Gudea  with  special  favor.  She  determines 
destinies.  Another  king,  Ur-Nina,  embodies  the  name  of  the 
goddess  in  his  own,  and  devotes  himself  to  the  enlargement  of  her 

1  Keih  Bibl.  3,  1,  72,  note.  Some  scholars,  as  Hommel  (Gesch.  <!.  alt.  Morgen- 
landes,  p.  68),  propose  to  identify  this  place  with  the  Assyrian  Nineveh,  but  the  con- 
jecture lacks  proof  and  is  altogether  improbable. 


BABYLONIAN   GODS.  87 

temple.  From  the  manner  in  which  she  is  associated  with  Nin- 
girsu,  aiding  the  latter  in  guarding  his  temple  E-ninnu,  and  unit- 
ing with  the  god  in  granting  the  sceptre  to  Gudea,  one  is  tempted 
to  conclude  that  the  two  towns,  Girsu  and  Nina,  were  amalga- 
mated before  their  absorption  into  Lagash,  so  that  the  god 
and  goddess  acquired  the  relationship  to  one  another  of 
husband  and  consort.  As  for  the  connection  between  this 
Babylonian  Nina,  and  the  late  Assyrian  capital,  it  is  quite 
possible  that  the  origin  of  the  latter  is  to  be  traced  to  a  settle- 
ment made  by  inhabitants  of  the  former,  although  it  should  be 
added  that  there  is  no  positive  evidence  that  can  be  adduced 
in  support  of  this  proposition.  It  accords,  however,  with  the 
northward  movement  of  culture  and  civilization  in  Mesopotamia. 
If  this  connection  between  the  two  Ninevehs  be  accepted,  the 
question  suggests  itself  whether,  in  time,  Nina  did  not  become 
merely  another  form  of  Ishtar.  The  Assyrian  capital  is  fre- 
quently spoken  of  as  the  '  beloved  city '  of  Ishtar,  and  unless  it 
be  supposed  that  this  epithet  simply  reflects  the  comparatively 
late  popularity  of  the  distinctively  Assyrian  Ishtar,  the  most 
natural  explanation  would  be  to  propose  the  equation  Nina  = 
Ishtar. 

In  the  incantation  texts,  Nina  is  frequently  appealed  to  as 
the  daughter  of  Ea,  —  the  god  of  the  deep.  This  relationship, 
as  well  as  the  interpretation  of  the  ideogram  above  set  forth, 
points  to  the  original  character  of  the  goddess  as  a  water-deity. 
This  goddess,  therefore,  would  be  of  an  entirely  different  form 
from  the  ones  discussed  in  the  previous  paragraphs.  Instead 
of  being  a  member  of  the  heavenly  pantheon,  her  place  is  with 
the  kingdom  over  which  Ea  presides,  and  whose  dwelling- 
place  is  the  watery  deep.  In  any  case,  Nina  is  originally 
distinct  from  Ishtar,  Nana,  and  Anunit ;  and  she  retains  an 
independent  existence  to  a  later  period  than  most  of  the  other 
great  goddesses  that  have  been  discussed.  In  an  inscription 
of  the  days  of  Belnadinaplu  (c.  noo  B.C.),  published  by  Hil- 


88  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

precht,1  Nina  appears  as  the  patron  deity  of  Der,  —  a  city  of 
Southern  Babylonia.  There  too  she  is  called  the '  daughter  of  Ea,' 
the  creator  of  everything.  She  is  '  the  mistress  of  goddesses.' 
Attached  to  her  temple  there  are  lands  that  having  been 
wrongfully  wrested  from  the  priests  are  returned  upon  royal 
command,  under  solemn  invocation  of  the  goddess.  How  her 
worship  came  to  be  transferred  to  Der  we  do  not  know.  She 
appears  in  the  inscription  in  question  by  the  side  of  a  goddess 
who  —  following  Hommel--is  none  other  than  Bau.  Der  is 
called  the  city  of  the  god  Anu,  and  we  can  only  suppose  that 
it  must  at  one  time  have  risen  to  sufficient  importance  to  harbor 
in  its  midst  a  number  of  deities.  It  is  presumably-  the  place 
whence  Nebuchadnezzar  I.  sets  out  in  the  twelfth  century  to 
drive  the  Cassites  off  the  throne  of  Babylonia.  May  it  be 
that,  during  the  days  of  the  foreign  rule,  priests  attached  to 
the  service  of  various  of  the  old  gods  and  goddesses  trans- 
ferred the  worship  of  these  deities  to  places  more  secure  from 
interference  ? 

Be  this  as  it  may,  if  our  Nina  has  any  connection  with  the 
goddess  of  Nineveh,  it  is  certain  that  Ishtar  has  retained  none 
of  Nina's  traits.  The  fusion  in  this  case  has  been  so  com- 
plete that  naught  but  the  faintest  tradition  of  an  original  and 
independent  Nina  has  survived  in  the  North. 


Anu. 

This  god,  who,  from  a  theoretical  point  of  view  (as  will  be 
shown  in  a  subsequent  chapter),  was  regarded  as  standing  at 
the  head  of  the  organized  Babylonian  pantheon,  figures  only 
incidentally  in  the  inscriptions  prior  to  the  days  of  Hammurabi. 
Ur-Bau  of  the  first  dynasty  of  Ur,  in  invoking  Nannar,  calls 

1  Old  Babylonian  Inscriptions,  i.  pis.  30,  31.  (See  now  Peiser,  Kcils  Bill.  4, 
pp.  6  |-f>C>.) 

-  Questioned  by  Peiser,  il>. 


BABYLONIAN  GODS.  89 

the  latter  '  the  powerful  bull  of  Arm.'  The  reference  is  inter- 
esting, for  it  shows  that  already  in  these  early  days  the  position 
of  Arm,  as  the  god  of  the  heavenly  expanse,  was  fixed.  The 
moon  appearing  in  the  heavens,  and  the  resemblance  of  its 
crescent  to  a  bull's  horn,1  are  the  two  factors  that  account  for 
the  expressive  epithet  used  by  Ur-Bau.  That  the  worship  of 
the  god  of  heaven  far  excellence  should  not  have  enjoyed  great 
popularity  in  the  early  clays  of  the  Babylonian  religion  might 
seem  strange  at  first  sight.  A  little  reflection,  however,  will 
make  this  clear.  A  god  of  the  heavens  is  an  abstract  concep- 
tion, and  while  it  is  possible  that  even  in  an  early  age,  such  a 
conception  may  have  arisen  in  some  minds,  it  is  not  of  a 
character  calculated  to  take  a  popular  hold.  As  we  proceed 
in  our  attempt  to  trace  the  development  of  the  Babylonian 
religion,  we  will  find  the  line  of  demarcation  separating  the 
theological  system,  as  evolved  by  the  schoolmen,  from  the 
popular  phases  of  the  religion,  becoming  more  marked.  In  the 
inscriptions  of  the  old  Babylonian  rulers,  comparatively  little  of 
the  influence  of  the  Babylonian  theologians  is  to  be  detected. 
Even  the  description  of  the  moon  as  the  bull  of  heaven  falls 
within  the  domain  of  popular  fancy.  It  is  different  in  the  days 
after  Hammurabi,  when  political  concentration  leads  to  the 
focussing  of  intellectual  life  in  the  Euphrates  Valley,  with  all 
the  consequences  that  the  establishment  of  a  central  priesthood, 
with  growing  powers  over  ever-increasing  territory,  involves. 
It  is  to  be  noted,  moreover,  that  the  manner  in  which  in  the 
old  Babylonian  inscriptions  Ann  is  written,2  indicates  that 
the  abstraction  involved  in  the  conception  of  a  god  of  heaven 
had  not  yet  been  reached,  though  some  measure  of  personi- 
fication   was  of    course  inevitable    at  a  time    when    animistic 

1  Among  many  nations  the  moon  is  pictured  as  a  horned  animal.  See  Robert 
Brown's  interesting  monograph  on  The  Unicorn,  pp.  27  seq.  et passim  ;  also  above, 
p.  76. 

2  Simply  the  sign  AN  (—  god,  heaven)  and  the  phonetic  complement  na. 


90  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

notions  still  held  sway.  A  direct  indication  of  this  per- 
sonification of  heaven  without  the  deification  appears  in 
the  epithet  'child  of  Ami,'  bestowed  upon  the  goddess 
Bau.  The  reference  to  the  heavens  in  this  connection  is 
an  allusion  to  Bau's  position  as  the  patroness  of  that  quarter 
of  Lagash  known  as  the  'brilliant  town,'1  and  where  Bau's 
temple  stood.  The  transference  of  the  quality  of  '  brilliancy ' 
from  the  town  to  the  goddess  would  be  expressed  by  calling 
the  latter  the  offspring  of  that  part  of  visible  nature  which  is 
associated  in  the  mind  with  '  brilliancy.'  Somewhat  mysterious, 
and  still  awaiting  a  satisfactory  explanation,  is  the  title  '  sacri- 
ficer,'  or  'priest  of  Anu,'  which  one  of  the  rulers  of  Lagash, 
Ur-Nin-girsu,  assumes.  It  is  scarcely  possible  that  the  god  of 
heaven  can  be  meant ;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  if  we  are  to 
assume  merely  a  personification  of  heaven,  we  encounter  fresh 
difficulties.  It  seems  to  me  that  the  use  of  Anu2  here  is 
purely  metaphorical  for  '  high  '  or  '  lofty,'  and  that  the  king 
merely  wishes  to  emphasize  the  dignity  of  his  station  by 
declaring  himself  to  be  the  heavenly  priest,  somewhat  as  we 
should  say  'priest  by  divine  grace,'  or  '  supreme  priest.' 

NiN-sr-A. 

Ur-Bau  and  Gudea  alone  of  the  ancient  rulers  refer  to  this 
god.  The  former  erects  a  temple  in  honor  of  the  god  in  some 
quarter  of  his  capitol  city,  while  the  latter  emphasizes  the 
strength  that  the  god  has  given  him.  These  references,  how- 
ever, show  that  the  god  must  have  been  of  considerable  impor- 
tance, and  in  this  case,  his  disappearance  from  the  later 
pantheon  is  probably  due  to  the  absorption  of  his  role  by  the 

1  Sec  above,  p.  59. 

-  Written  An-na,  without  the  determinative  for  deity.  DeSarzec,  Decouvertes en 
Chaldee,  pi.  37,  no.  8. 

•"■  The  second  element  may  also  be  read  dar.    See  Jensen,  Kelts  Bill.  3,  1,  p.  2^. 

note  1. 


BABYLON  J  AN   GOB'S.  91 

greater  god  of  Lagash,  —  Nin-girsu.  Like  Nin-girsu,  Nin-si-a 
was  a  god  of  war,  and  his  worship,  imported  perhaps  from 
some  ancient  site  to  Lagash,  falls  into  desuetude,  as  the 
attribute  accorded  to  him  becomes  the  distinguishing  trait  of 
the  chief  deity  of  the  place. 

Gal-alim. 

Among  the  various  deities  to  whom  Gudea  gives  praise  for 
the  position  and  glory  which  he  attains  is  Gal-alim.1  From 
him  he  has  received  great  rule  and  a  lofty  sceptre.  The 
phrase  is  of  a  very  general  nature  and  reveals  nothing  as  to 
the  special  character  of  the  god  in  question.  An  earlier  king, 
Uru-kagina,  refers  to  the  temple  of  the  god  at  Lagash.  Gal-alim 
may  have  been  again  a  merely  local  deity  belonging  to  one  of  the 
towns  that  fell  under  Gudea's  rule,  and  whose  attributes  again 
were  so  little  marked  that  this  god  too  disappeared  under  the 
overshadowing  importance  of  Nin-girsu.  He  and  another  god, 
Dun-shagga,  are  viewed  as  the  sons  of  Nin-girsu. 


Coming  to  some  of  the  deities  that  we  may  designate  as 
minor,  it  is  to  be  noted  that  in  the  case  of  certain  ones,  at  least, 
it  will  be  found  that  they  may  be  identified  with  others  more 
prominent,  and  that  what  seem  to  be  distinct  names  are  in 
reality  descriptive  epithets  of  gods  already  met  with.  This 
remark  applies  more  particularly  to  such  names  as  begin  with 
the  element  Nin,  signifying  either  'lord'  or  'lady,'  and  which, 
when  followed  by  the  name  of  a  place,  always  points  to  its 
being  a  title,  and,  when  followed  by  an  ideographic  compound, 
only  diminishes  that  probability  to  a  slight  degree.  We  have 
already  come    across    several   instances ;    thus    Nin-girsu,    the 

1  Inscription  B,  col.  ii.  19. 


92  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

lord  of  Girsu,  has  been  shown  to  be  a  form  of  Ninib,  itself  an 
ideogram,  the  reading  of  which,  it  will  be  recalled,  is  still 
uncertain;  and  again,  Nin-khar-sag  has  been  referred  to,  as 
one  of  the  titles  of  the  great  goddess  Belit.  Similarly,  Nin- 
gish-zida,  whose  name  signifies  '  the  lord  of  the  right-hand  (or 
propitious)  sceptre,'  becomes  a  title  and  not  a  name,  and 
when  Gudea  speaks  of  this  god  as  the  one  who  leads  him  to 
battle,  and  calls  him  '  king,'  he  is  simply  describing  the 
same  god  who  is  elsewhere  spoken  of  as  Nin-girsu.  By  the 
side  of  Nin-girsu  and  Nin-gish-zida  appears  Nin-shakh,  who,  as 
Oppert '  has  shown,  is  like  Nin-girsu  the  prototype  of  the  well- 
known  god  of  war,  Ninib.  However,  Nin-shakh  occupies,  in 
contradistinction  to  Nin-gish-zida  and  others,  a  position  in  the 
old  Babylonian  pantheon  of  an  independent  character,  so  that 
it  is  hardly  justifiable,  in  such  a  case,  to  identify  him  com- 
pletely with  Ninib,  and  place  the  name  on  a  par  with  the 
epithets  just  referred  to.  The  dividing  line  between  the  mere 
title  and  an  independent  god  thus  becomes  at  times  very  faint, 
and  yet  it  is  well  to  maintain  it  whenever  called  for.  In  the 
following  enumeration  of  the  minor  gods  of  the  old  Babylonian 
pantheon,  the  attempt  will  be  made  to  bring  out  this  distinction 
in  each  instance. 


Beginning  with 


Nin-shakh 


the  element  Nin,  as  has  several  times  been  mentioned,  points 
to  an  ideographic  form.  The  second  element  signifies 'wild 
boar,'  and  from  other  sources  we  know  that  this  animal  was 
a  sacred  one  in  Babylonia,  as  among  other  Semitic  nations.2 
Its    flesh,   on    certain    days  of  the    Babylonian    calendar,   was 

1  Sec  Hommel,  Semitische  Rulturen,  p.  389. 

'  Foi  tip'  sacred  character  of  the  swine  among  the  Semites,  see  W.  Robertson 
Smith's  The  Religion  of  the  Semites,  pp.  201,  272,  332,  457.  Rawlinson,  iii.  68,  22, 
occurs  .1  deity,  '  swine  of  the  right  hand,'  i.e.,  propitious. 


BABYLONIAN  GODS.  93 

forbidden  to  be  eaten,  from  which  we  are  permitted  to  conclude 
that  these  days  were  dedicated  to  the  animal,  and  the  prohibi- 
tion represents  perhaps  the  traces  of  some  old  religious  festival. 
May  Nin-shakh  therefore  have  been  a  '  swine  deity,'  just  as 
Nergal  is  symbolized  by  the  '  lion  '  ?  In  both  cases  the  animal 
would  be  a  symbol  of  the  violent  and  destructive  character  of 
the  god. 

The  ferocious  character  of  the  '  swine '  would  naturally 
result  in  assigning  to  Nin-shakh  warlike  attributes ;  and  as  a 
matter  of  fact  he  is  identified  at  times  with  Ninib.  His  subor- 
dinate position,  however,  is  indicated  by  his  being  called  the 
'servant,'  generally  of  En-lil,  occasionally  also  of  Anu,  and  as 
such  he  bears  the  name  of  Pap-sukal,1  i.e.,  '  divine  messenger.' 
Rim-Sin  builds  a  temple  to  Nin-shakh  at  Uruk,  and  from  its 
designation  as  his  'favorite  dwelling  place'  we  may  conclude 
that  Rim-Sin  only  restores  or  enlarges  an  ancient  temple  of  the 
deity.  In  the  light  of  this,  the  relationship  above  set  forth 
between  Nin-girsu,  Nin-gish-zida,  and  Nin-shakh  becomes  some- 
what clearer.  The  former,  the  local  deity  of  Girsu,  would  natu- 
rally be  called  by  the  kings  '  the  lord  of  the  true  sceptre,'  while 
the  subordination  of  Girsu  as  a  quarter  of  Lagash  finds  its  reflec- 
tion in  the  relationship  of  master  and  servant  pictured  as 
existing  between  En-lil  and  Nin-girsu.  Again,  the  warlike 
character  of  the  patron  deity  of  Girsu  would  lead  to  an  identi- 
fication with  Nin-shakh  of  Uruk,  possessing  the  same  traits  ; 
and  the  incorporation  of  Uruk  as  a  part  of  the  same  empire 
which  included  Lagash  and  its  quarters,  would  be  the  last 
link  bringing  about  the  full  equation  between  the  three.  With 
Ninib  —  the  solar  deity  —  coming  into  prominence  as  the  god 
of   war,    all  three    names,    Nin-girsu,    Nin-gish-zida,   and   Nin- 

1  Rawlinson,  ii.  59,  23.  The  second  element  in  Pap-sukal  is  the  common  Baby- 
lonian word  for  'servant,'  or  'messenger';  other  deities  therefore  standing  in  a 
subsidiary  position  are  also  called  Pap-sukal.  So  e.g.,  Nebo  and  Nusku.  See 
further  on  and  compare  Hommel,  Semiten,  pp.  479,  4S0. 


94  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

shakh,  would  be  regarded  by  a  later  age  as  merely  descriptive 
of  one  and  the  same  god. 


DUN-SHAGGA. 

Gudea  makes  mention  in  one  of  his  inscriptions,  by  the  side 
of  Nin-gish-zida,  of  a  god  Dun-shagga,1  whose  name  signifies 
the  '  chief  hero,'  but  the  phonetic  reading  of  which  it  is  impos- 
sible to  determine.-  Like  Nin-gish-zida,  he  is  a  warlike  god, 
and  from  that  one  might  suppose  that  he  too  is  only  another 
form  of  Nin-girsu-Ninib.  At  all  events,  he  did  not  differ 
materially  from  the  latter.  It  is  from  him,  that  Gudea  again 
declares  his  power  to  be  derived,  just  as  elsewhere  he  accords 
to  Nin-girsu  this  distinction.  The  element  '  Dun,'  which  is 
very  much  the  same  as  '  Nin,'  speaks  in  favor  of  regarding 
Dun-shagga  as  a  title;  but,  in  default  of  positive  evidence,  it 
will  not  be  out  of  place  to  give  him  an  independent  position, 
and  to  regard  his  identification  with  Nin-girsu  as  a  later  phase 
due  to  the  extension  of  Nin-girsu's  jurisdiction  and  his  corre- 
sponding absorption  of  a  varying  number  of  minor  gods.  This 
tendency  on  the  part  of  the  greater  gods  to  absorb  the  minor 
ones  is  as  distinctive  a  trait  in  the  development  of  the  Baby- 
lonian religion,  as  is  the  subordination  of  one  god  to  the  other, 
whether  expressed  by  making  the  subordinate  god  the  consort, 
the  chief,  or  the  servant  of  a  superior  one.  We  have  seen 
that  such  terms  of  relationship  correspond  to  certain  degrees 
of  political  conditions  existing  between  the  conquering  and  the 
conquered  districts.  Amalgamation  of  two  cities  or  districts 
is  portrayed  in  the  relation  of  the  two  patron  deities  as  hus- 
band  and  wife,  the  stronger  of  the  two  being  the  former,  the 

1  Inscription  B.  col.  iii.  2. 

-  Uru-kagina,  earlier  than  Gudea  (de  Sarzec,  pi.  32),  appears  to  have  built  a  temple 
to  Dun-shagga,  but  the  passage  is  not  altogether  clear.  The  element  also  appears 
in  the  name  of  the  ruler  of  Ur,  Dungi,  i*., ' the  legitimate  hero,1  as  Sargon  is  the 
legitimate  king.' 


BABYLONIAN   GODS.  95 

more  subservient  pictured  as  the  latter.  The  more  pronounced 
superiority  of  the  one  place  over  the  other  finds  expression  in 
the  relation  of  father  to  child,  while  that  of  master  and  servant 
emphasizes  the  complete  control  exercised  by  the  one  over  the 
other.  Lastly,  the  absorption  of  one  deity  into  another,  is 
correlative  either  with  the  most  perfect  form  of  conquest,  or 
the  complete  disappearance  of  the  seat  of  his  worship  in 
consequence  of  the  growing  favor  of  one  possessing  sufficiently 
similar  qualities  to  warrant  identification  with  the  other. 

LUGAL-BANDA. 

Sin-gashid  of  the  dynasty  of  Uruk  makes  mention  of  this 
deity  at  the  beginning  of  one  of  his  inscriptions.  To  him 
and  to  his  consort,  Nin-gal,  a  temple  as  '  the  seat  of  their 
joy'  at  that  place.  This  association  of  the  god  with  the 
town  points  again  to  a  local  deity,  but  possessing  a  character 
which  leads  to  the  absorption  of  the  god  in  the  solar  god, 
Nergal,  whom  we  have  already  encountered,  and  who  will 
occupy  us  a  good  deal  when  we  come  to  the  period  after 
Hammurabi.  The  identification  of  the  two  is  already  fore- 
shadowed in  an  inscription  of  another  member  of  the  same 
dynasty,  Sin-gamil,  who  places  the  name  of  Nergal  exactly 
where  his  predecessor  mentions  Lugal-banda.  The  first  ele- 
ment in  his  name  signifies  'king,'  the  second  apparently '  strong,' 
so  that  in  this  respect,  too,  the  god  comes  close  to  Nergal, 
whose  name  likewise  indicates  'great  lord.'  The  consort  of 
Lugal-banda  is 


*» 


Nin-Gul. 


Her  name  signifies  'the  destructive  lady,'  —  an  appropriate 
epithet  for  the  consort  of  a  solar  deity.  It  is  Sin-gashid  again 
who  associates  Ningul  with  Lugal-banda,  and  emphasizes  his 
affection  for  the  goddess  by  calling  her  his  mother.     In  one 


96  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RKL/GION. 

inscription,  moreover,  Sin-gashid  addresses  himself  exclusively 
to  the  goddess,  who  had  an  equal  share  in  the  temple  at  Uruk. 

DUMUZI-ZU-Ai:.\. 

Among  the  deities  appealed  to  by  Ur-Bau  appears  one  whose 
name  is  to  be  interpreted  as  the  '  unchangeable  child  of  the 
watery  deep.'  The  great  god  of  the  deep  we  have  seen  is  Ea. 
Dumuzi-zu-aba  therefore  belongs  to  the  water-deities,  and  one 
who,  through  his  subordinate  rank  to  Ea,  sinks  to  the  level 
of  a  water-spirit.  Ur-Bau  declares  himself  to  be  the  darling 
of  this  deity,  and  in  the  town  of  Girsu  he  erects  a  temple  to 
him.  Girsu,  however,  was  not  the  patron  city  of  the  god, 
for  Ur-Bau  gives  Dumuzi-zu-aba,  the  appellation  of  '  the  lord  of 
Kinunira,' 1  a  place  the  actual  situation  of  which  is  unknown. 
Dumuzi-zu-aba,  accordingly,  is  to  be  regarded  as  a  local  deity 
of  a  place  which,  situated  probably  on  an  arm  of  the  Euphrates, 
was  the  reason  for  the  watery  attributes  assigned  to  the  god. 
The  comparative  insignificance  of  the  place  is  one  of  the 
factors  that  accounts  for  the  minor  importance  of  the  god,  and 
the  second  factor  is  the  popularity  enjoyed  by  another  child  of 
the  great  Ea,  his  child  par  excellence,  Marduk,  who  is  best 
known  as  the  patron  god  of  the  city  of  Babylon.  By  the  side 
of  Marduk,  the  other  children  of  Ea,  the  minor  water-deities, 
disappear,  so  that  to  a  later  generation  Dumuzi-zu-aba  appeals 
merely  as  a  form  of  Marduk.  With  Dumuzi-zu-aba,  we  must  be 
careful  not  to  confuse 

I  )UMU-ZI, 

who  in  the  old  Babylonian  inscriptions  is  mentioned  once  by 
Sin-iddina,2  in  connection  with  the  sun-god.  Dumu-zi,  signify- 
ing 'child  of  life,'  has  a  double  aspect — an  agricultural  deity 

1  Signifying,  according  to  Jensen,  Keils  Bibl.  3,  1,  p.  25/  fighting-place.' 

2  Published  by  Delitzsch,  Beitr'dge  zitr  Assyr.  i.  301-311. 


BABYLONIAN   GODS.  97 

and  at  the  same  time  a  god  of  the  lower  world.  He  plays  an 
important  part  in  the  eschatological  literature  of  the  Baby- 
lonians, but  hardly  none  at  all  in  the  historical  and  incantation 
texts.  A  fuller  treatment  may  therefore  be  reserved  for  a  future 
chapter. 

Lugal-Erima. 

A  purely  local  deity,  if  the  reading  and  interpretation  offered 
by  Jensen,  '  King  of  the  city  Erim,'  is  correct.  The  mention 
of  the  deity  in  an  inscription  of  Ur-Bau,  who  calls  himself  the 
'  beloved  servant '  of  this  god,  would  be  due  to  the  circum- 
stance that  the  district  within  which  the  city  in  question  lay 
was  controlled  by  the  rulers  of  Lagash.  To  invoke  as  large  a 
number  of  deities  as  possible  was  not  only  a  means  of  securing 
protection  from  many  sides,  but  was  already  in  the  early  days 
of  Babylonian  history  indulged  in  by  rulers,  as  a  means  of 
emphasizing  the  extent  and  manifold  character  of  their  juris- 
diction. 

NlN-E-GAL    AND    NlNGAL. 

A  temple  was  erected  to  Nin-e-gal  by  the  wife  of  Rim-Sin, 
of  the  second  dynasty  of  Ur  and  Akkad.  Her  name  as  inter- 
preted in  the  tablet  dedicated  to  her,  signifies  again,  as  in 
several  cases  already  noted,  '  great  lady.'  She  was  probably 
therefore  only  the  consort  of  some  patron  deity  ;  and  Nannar 
being  the  most  prominent  god  invoked  by  Rim-Sin,  it  would 
seem  that  the  goddess  to  whom  the  queen  pays  her  respects  is 
again  one  of  the  consorts  of  the  moon-god.1  This  conclusion 
is  supported  by  the  direct  association  of  Nannar  of  Ur  and 
Ningal  in  an  inscription  emanating  from  an  earlier  member  of 
the  same  dynasty  to  which  Rim-Sin  belongs.  Nur-Ramman 
speaks  of  building  temples  to  these  deities  in  the  city  of  Ur. 
Hence   the  goddess   is  also  represented   as   interceding  with 

1  So  also  Jensen,  Kosmologic,  p.  14,  note  3. 


98  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Sin  on  behalf  of  those  who  appeal  to  her.  The  form  Nin- 
e-gal is  but  a  variant  of  Nin-gal,  so  that  the  identification 
of  the  two  lies  beyond  doubt,  and  it  may  very  well  be  that 
the  temple  erected  by  the  consort  of  Rim-Sin  is  the  same 
as  the  one  referred  to  by  Nur-Ramman.  In  a  land  where 
polygamy  was  a  prevailing  custom,  the  gods  too  might  be 
represented  as  having  a  number  of  consorts.  There  would 
of  course  be,  just  as  in  human  relations,  one  chief  consort,  but 
there  might  be  others  ranged  at  the  side  of  the  latter.1  Some 
of  these  may  have  been  consorts  of  other  minor  deities,  wor- 
shipped in  the  same  district,  and  who  were  given  to  the  more 
important  divinity  as  he  gradually  overshadowed  the  others. 
In  this  way,  we  may  account  for  the  large  variety  of  '  ladies' 
and  '  great  ladies '  met  with  in  the  Babylonian  pantheon,  and 
who,  being  merely  '  reflections '  of  male  deities,  with  no 
sharply  marked  traits  of  their  own,  would  naturally  come  to  be 
confused  with  one  another,  and  finally  be  regarded  as  various 
forms  of  one  and  the  same  goddess.  Still  another  member  of 
the  second  dynasty  of  Ur,  En-anna-tuma,  earlier  even  than 
Nur-Ramman,  invokes  Nin-gal  in  an  inscription  found  in  the 
ancient  capital,  Ur.  Here,  too,  the  goddess  appears  in  associa- 
tion with  Nannar  ;  but,  curiously  enough,  she  is  designated  as 
the  mother  of  Shamash.  It  will  be  borne  in  mind  that  in  the 
city  of  Ur,  the  sun-god  occupied  a  secondary  place  at  the  side 
of  the  moon-god.  This  relationship  is  probably  indicated  by 
the  epithet  '  offspring  of  Nin-gal,'  accorded  to  Shamash  in  the 
inscription  referred  to.  The  moon  being  superior  to  the  sun, 
the  consort  of  the  moon-god  becomes  the  mother  of  the  sun- 
god. 

Reference  has  several  times  been  made  to 

1  So  Anu  appears  to  have  concubines. 


BABYLONIAN  GODS.  99 

NlN-GISH-ZIDA, 

who,  originally  a  distinct  solar  deity,  becomes  scarcely  distin- 
guishable from  Nin-girsu,  and  is  eventually  identified  with  the 
great  Nin-ib.1  It  is  noticeable  that  these  four  deities,  Nin- 
girsu,  Nin-shakh,  Nin-gish-zida,  and  Nin-ib,  who  are  thus  asso- 
ciated together,  all  contain  the  element  Nin  in  their  names,  - 
a  factor  that  may  turn  out  to  be  of  some  importance  when 
more  abundant  material  shall  be  forthcoming  for  tracing  their 
development  in  detail.  One  of  Gudea's  inscriptions 2  begins 
with  the  significant  statement,  '  Nin-gish-zida  is  the  god  of 
Gudea';  and  elsewhere  when  speaking  of  him,  he  is  'my  god,' 
or  '  his  god.'  None  of  the  ancient  Babylonian  rulers  make 
mention  of  him  except  Gudea,  though  in  the  incantation  texts 
he  is  introduced  and  significantly  termed  '  the  throne-bearer'  of 
the  earth.  The  purely  local  character  of  the  deity  is,  further- 
more, emphasized  by  the  reference  to  his  temple  in  Girsu,  on  a 
brick  and  on  a  cone  containing  dedicatory  inscriptions,  inscribed 
by  Gudea  in  honor  of  the  god.3 

Shul-pa-uddu. 

The  wife  of  the  famous  Gudea,  Gin-Shul-pa-uddu,  bears  a 
name  in  which  one  of  the  elements  is  a  deity,  the  phonetic 
reading  of  whose  name  is  still  uncertain.4  The  elements  com- 
prising it,  namely,  '  lord  '  (?),  '  sceptre,'  and  '  radiant,'  leave  little 
doubt  as  to  the  solar  character  of  the  god.  Besides  Gudea's 
wife,  a  ruler,  Ur-Shul-pa-uddu,5  belonging  apparently  to  a  some- 
what earlier  period,  embodies  this  deity  in  his  name.  The  wor- 
ship of  the  deity,  therefore,  belongs  to  a  very  early  epoch,  and 

1  See  above,  pp.  92,  93.  2  Inscription  C. 

3  De  Sarzec,  pi.  t,j,  no.  5  ;   Trans.  Soc.  Bibl.  Arch.  vi.  279. 

4  Jensen,  Kosmologie,  p.  127,  proposes  to  read  Umun-pauddu. 

5  Hilprecht,  Old  Babylonian  hiscriptions,  i.  2,  no.  93.  The  name  also  appears  in 
syllabaries  as  Shul-pa-ud-du-a.  For  the  element  fa-udda,  see  p.  103.  In  Nergal*s 
name  Shid-lam-ta-uddu-a  (p.  65),  the  same  final  elements  are  found  which  appear  to  be 
characteristic  epithets  of  solar  deities.  The  first  element  in  the  name  has  also  the 
value  Dun  (as  in  Dun-gi). 


100  BABYLONIAN-ASS  1  'RIAN   REL I  (HON. 

appears  at  one  time  to  have  enjoyed  considerable  popularity 
within  a  certain  district  of  Babylonia.  To  what  region  of 
Babylonia  he  belongs  has  not  yet  been  ascertained.  Judging 
from  analogous  instances,  he  represented  some  phase  of  the  sun 
worshipped  in  a  particular  locality,  whose  cult,  with  the  disap- 
pearance of  the  place  from  the  surface  of  political  affairs, 
yielded  to  the  tendency  to  concentrate  sun-worship  in  two  or 
three  deities,  —  Shamash  and  Ninib  more  especially.  In  the 
astronomy  of  the  Babylonians  the  name  survived  as  a  desig- 
nation of  Marduk-Jupiter.1 

Nin-Mar. 

A  local  deity,  designated  as  the  lady  of  Mar,  is  invoked  by 
Ur-Bau,  from  whom  we  learn  that  she  was  the  daughter  of 
Nina.  Mar,  with  the  determinative  for  country,  A7,  appears 
to  have  been  the  name  of  a  district  extending  to  the  Persian 
Gulf.2  The  capital  of  the  district  is  represented  by  the  mound 
Tel-Id,  not  far  from  Warka.  Her  subsidiary  position  is  indi- 
cated in  these  words,  and  we  may  conclude  that  Nin-Mar  at 
an  early  period  fell  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  district  in 
which  Nina,  was  supreme.  For  all  that,  Nin-Mar,  or  the  city 
in  which  her  cult  was  centralized,  must  have  enjoyed  consider- 
able favor.  Ur-Bau  calls  her  the  'gracious  lady,'  and  fleets  a 
temple,  the  name  of  which,  Ish-gu-tur,a  i.e.,  according  to  Jensen's 
plausible  interpretation,  '  the  house  that  serves  as  a  court  for 
all  persons,'  points  to  Mar  as  a  place  of  pilgrimage  to  which 
people  came  from  all  sides.  Gudea,  accordingly,  does  not  omit 
to  include  'the  lady  of  Mar  '  in  his  list  of  the  chief  deities  to 
whom  he  pays  his  devotions  ;  and  on  the  assumption  of  the 
general  favor  in  which  the  city  of  Mar  stood  as  a  sacred  town, 
we  may  account  for  the  fact  that  a  much  later  ruler,  Dungi, 
of  the  dynasty  of  Ur,4  erects  a  temple  to  her  honor. 

1  Jensen.  Kosmologie,^.  125,  126. 

-  See  Journal  Asiatique,  September-October,  1895,  P-  393- 

■'  I)e  Sarzec,  pi.  8,  col.  v.  11.  S-12.  4  IK.  pi.  2,  no.  4. 


BABYLONIAN  GODS.  101 


Pa-sag. 

A  deity,  the  phonetic  reading  of  whose  name  is  unknown,  or 
at  all  events  uncertain,1  is  mentioned  once  by  Gudea  in  the 
long  list  of  deities  that  has  been  several  times  referred  to. 
The  ideographs  with  which  his  name  is  written  designate  him 
as  a  chief  of  some  kind,  and  in  accord  with  this,  Gudea  calls 
him  '  the  leader  of  the  land.'  Pa-sag  is  mentioned  immediately 
after  the  sun-god  Utu,  and  in  view  of  the  fact  that  another 
solar  deity,  I-shum,  whom  we  shall  come  across  in  a  future 
chapter,  is  designated  by  the  same  title 2  as  Pa-sag,  it  seems 
safe  to  conclude  that  the  latter  is  likewise  a  solar  deity,  and  in 
all  probability,  the  prototype  of  I-shum,  if  not  indeed  identical 
with  him. 

NlSABA    (OR    NlDABA). 

In  a  dream  which  the  gods  send  to  Gudea,  he  sees  among 
other  things,  a  goddess,  whose  name  may  be  read  Nisaba  or 
Nidaba.3  Nina.,  who  interprets  the  dream  to  the  ruler  of 
Shirpurla,  declares  that  Nisaba  is  her  sister.  In  a  text  belong- 
ing to  a  still  earlier  age,  the  deity  is  mentioned  as  the  begetter 
of  a  king  whose  name  is  read  Lugal-zaggisi.4  From  the  man- 
ner in  which  the  name  of  the  goddess  is  written,  as  well  as 
from  other  sources,  we  know  that  Nisaba  is  an  agricultural 
deity.  In  historical  texts  she  plays  scarcely  any  role  at  all,  but 
in  incantations  she  is  often  referred  to ;  and  from  the  fact  that 
Nisaba  is  appealed  to,  to  break  the  power  of  the  demons  in 
conjunction  with  Ea,  it  would  appear  that  the  position  once 
occupied   by  her   was  no   insignificant  one.      Nin-girsu,  it  will 

1  Jensen  regards  Pa-sag  as  a  possible  phonetic  form,  but  his  view  is  hardly 
tenable. 

2  See  Zimmern,  Busspsalmen,  pp.  6o,  6i. 

3  Cylinder  A,  cols.  iv.  and  v.     Amiaud  read  the  name  Nirba. 

4  Just  published  by  Hilprecht,  Old  Babylonian  Inscriptions,!. 2,  pis.  3S-42.  Cf.  p.  52. 


102  BAB  )  Z  ( WIAJV-ASS )  RIAJV  RELIGION. 

be  recalled,  has  also  traits  which  connect  him  with  agricultural 
life,  and  Nina  being  the  daughter  of  Nin-si-a,  one  of  the  forms 
under  which  Ningirsu-Ninib  appears,  we  may  connect  Nisaba 
directly  with  the  cults  of  which  Lagash  formed  the  center. 
Nisaba  must  have  been  the  consort  of  one  of  the  agricultural 
gods,  whose  jurisdiction  falls  within  Gudea's  empire.  Lugal- 
zaggisi,  as  the  king  of  Uruk,  assigns  to  the  goddess  a  first 
place.  Her  origin  must,  therefore,  be  sought  in  this  region. 
In  later  clays  the  name  of  the  goddess  is  used  to  describe  the 
fertility  of  the  soil  in  general.  So  Ashurbanabal,  describing 
the  prosperity  existing  in  his  days,  says  that  grain  was  abundant 
through  the  '  increase  of  Nisaba.' 1 


KU(?)-Anna. 

A  goddess  of  this  name  —  reading  of  the  first  sign  doubtful  — 
is  mentioned  by  Ur-Bau,  who  builds  a  temple  to  her  in  Girsu.  If 
Amiaud  is  correct  in  his  reading  of  the  first  sign,  the  goddess 
was  identified  at  one  time  by  the  Babylonians  with  the  consort  of 
Ramman  —  the  storm-god.  This  would  accord  with  the  descrip- 
tion that  Ur-Bau  gives  of  the  goddess.  She  is  the  one  who 
deluges  the  land  with  water — belonging  therefore  to  the  same 
order  as  Bau. 

In  a  list  of  deities  enumerated  by  a  ruler  of  Erech,  Lugal- 
zaggisi,2  are  found  (i)  a  local  goddess, 


Umu, 

designated  as  the    '  priestess    of    Uruk,' 3    and    occupying    an 
inferior   rank  to   (2)   a  goddess, 

1  VR.  col.  i.  .)S. 

2  See  at  close  of  chapter  vi. 

a  Hilprecht,  ib.  no.  87,  col.  i.  30. 


BABYLONIAN   GODS.  103 

NlN-AKHA-KUDDU,1 

who  is  called  '  the  mistress  of  Uruk.'  The  importance  of  Erech 
in  the  early  history  of  Babylonia  is  emphasized  by  the  inscrip- 
tions from  Nippur,  recently  published  by  Dr.  Hilprecht.  It  is 
natural,  therefore,  to  find  several  deities  of  a  purely  local  type 
commemorated  by  kings  who  belong  to  this  region.  The 
goddess  Umu  is  not  heard  of  again.  The  great  goddess  of 
Uruk,  Nana,  absorbs  the  smaller  ones,  and  hence  Nin-akha- 
kuddu  survives  chiefly  in  incantation  texts  as  '  the  lady  of 
shining  waters,'  of  '  purification,'  and  of  '  incantations.' 2 

Lastly,  a  passing  reference  may  be  made  to  several  deities 
to  whom  sanctuaries  are  erected  by  Uru-Kagina  in  the  great 
temple  of  Bau  at  Uru-azaga,  and  whom  Amiaud  regards  as 
sons  of  Bau. 

Uru-Kagina  enumerates  three,  Za-za-uru,  Im-pa-ud-du,  and 
Gim-nun-ta-ud-du-a.3  The  element  ud-du  in  the  last  two  names 
signifies  'radiant'  or  'rising  up';  while  pa-ud-du  (like  in  Shul- 
pa-ud-du,  p.  99)  means  '  radiant  sceptre.'  If  to  this,  we  add 
that  Im  is  'storm,'  it  will  appear  plausible  to  see  in  the  second 
name  a  form  of  a  raging  solar  deity  and  perhaps  also  in  the 
third  ;  gim  nun  in  the  latter  name  may  mean  '  creating  lord.' 
To  these  Amiaud 4  adds  from  other  sources,  Khi-gir-nunna, 
Khi-shaga,  Gurmu,  and  Zarmu.  He  takes  these  seven  deities 
as  sons  of  Bau,  but  he  offers  no  conclusive  evidence  for  his 
theory.  Some  of  these  deities  may  turn  out  to  be  synonymous 
with  such  as  have  already  been  met  with. 

1  lb.  i.  32.     Hilprecht  reads  Nin-a-gid-kha-du,  but  this  can  hardly  be  correct. 

2  The  two  ideas, '  water '  and  '  incantation,'  are  correlated.  The  '  waters  '  meant 
are  those  used  for  purification  purposes  in  connection  with  the  magic  formulas. 

3  De  Sarzec.  pi.  32,  col.  ii.  9-11. 

4  Records  of  the  Past,  n.s.,  i.  59.  Amiaud  reads  the  second  name  Im-ghud-ena 
and  the  third  Gim  (or  Ur)-nun-ta-ena.  The  publication  in  De  Sarzec  favors  my 
readings. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  CONSORTS  OF  THE   GODS. 

Attention  has  already  been  directed  to  the  comparatively 
small  number  of  female  deities  that  appear  in  the  inscriptions  of 
the  first  period  of  Babylonian  history.  We  must,  however,  not 
conclude  from  this,  that  such  deities  did  not  exist  in  larger  num- 
bers. On  the  contrary,  we  may  feel  certain  that  every  god  had  his 
consort,  and  in  some  cases  more  than  one.  Several  instances 
of  such  consorts  have  been  furnished  in  this  chapter  ;  but  if 
the  consorts  of  the  larger  number  of  these  gods  are  unknown, 
it  is  because  of  the  insignificant  role  that  these  consorts  played. 
The  goddesses  of  Babylonia,  with  few  exceptions,  become  mere 
shadowy  reflections  of  the  gods,  with  but  little  independent 
power,  and  in  some  cases  none  at  all.  They  owe  what  popu- 
larity they  enjoyed  to  their  association  with  their  male  com- 
panions. In  consequence  of  this  inferior  role  played  by  the 
female  deities,  the  tendency  becomes  more  pronounced,  as  we 
pass  from  the  first  to  the  second  period  of  Babylonian  history, 
to  reduce  by  assimilation  the  small  number  that  have  indepen- 
dent attributes,  until  we  reach  a  condition  in  which  we  have 
practically  only  one  goddess,  appearing  under  many  forms.  It 
is  only  in  the  religious  texts,  and  in  some  phases  of  the  popular 
beliefs,  that  goddesses  retain  a  certain  degree  of  prominence. 
So,  a  goddess  Allat,  as  we  shall  see,  plays  an  important  part 
as  the  chief  goddess  of  the  subterranean  cave  that  houses  the 
dead.  Allat  appears  to  have  been  originally  a  consort  of  the 
famous  Bel  of  Nippur,  but  through  association  with  Nergal, 
who  becomes  the  chief  god  of  the  lower  world,  almost  all  traces 
of  the  original   character   of   the   goddess   disappear.     Again, 


THE    CONSORTS   OF   THE    GODS.  105 

Gula,  the  consort  of  Nin-ib,  while  occasionally  mentioned  in 
the  historical  texts  of  the  second  and  third  period,  and  under  the 
form  Ma-ma,  as  an  element  in  a  proper  name  belonging  to  the 
oldest  period,1  is  more  frequently  invoked  in  incantations  as  the 
healer  of  disease.  The  same  is  the  case  with  other  goddesses  ; 
so  that  we  may  conclude  that  from  the  earliest  times,  the  Baby- 
lonian religion  shared  the  trait  so  marked  in  all  Semitic  cults,  of  a 
combination  of  the  male  and  female  principle  in  the  personifica- 
tion of  the  powers  that  controlled  the  fate  of  man.  In  part,  no 
doubt,  the  minor  importance  of  women,  so  far  as  the  outward 
aspects  of  social  and  political  life  were  concerned,  is  a  factor  in 
the  altogether  secondary  importance  attaching  to  the  consorts  of 
the  gods  ;  but  we  may  feel  certain  that  there  was  no  god,  how- 
ever restricted  in  his  jurisdiction,  or  however  limited  in  the 
number  of  his  worshippers,  who  had  not  associated  with  him  a 
female  companion,  who  follows  him  as  the  shadow  follows  the 
substance. 

1  According  to  Hilprecht,  ib.  p.  48,  note  6.      For  Ma-ma  and  Me-me,  as  names 
of  Gula,  see  chapter  viii. 


CHAPTER    VI. 


GUDEA'S    PANTHEON. 


Gudea  manifests  a  fondness  for  giving'  to  his  pantheon  as 
large  a  compass  as  possible.  In  this  respect,  he  follows  earlier 
examples,  and  also  sets  an  example  which  is  followed  by  many  of 
the  rulers  of  Babylonia  and  Assyria,  who  felt  that  the  larger  the 
number  of  gods  invoked  by  them,  the  more  impressive  would 
their  own  position  appear  in  the  eyes  of  their  subjects.  More- 
over, by  incorporating  in  their  pantheon  the  gods  associated  with 
districts  that  they  controlled,  they  would  not  only  secure  the  pro- 
tection of  these  deities,  but  would  emphasize  their  own  claim 
to  an  extended  sovereignty.  The  beginning  and  the  close  of 
dedicatory  and  commemorative  inscriptions  were  the  favorite 
opportunities,  seized  upon  by  the  kings,  for  parading  the  list 
of  the  powers  under  whose  patronage  they  wished  to  appear. 
These  lists  are  both  interesting  and  valuable,  as  furnishing  in  a 
convenient  form  a  summary  of  the  chief  gods  included  in  the 
Babylonian  pantheon  at  the  various  historical  periods.  At  the 
close  of  one  of  his  inscriptions,1  Gudea  furnishes  a  list  of  no 
less  than  eighteen  deities.  In  rapid  succession  he  enumerates 
Ann,  En-lil  (Bel),  Nin-khar-sag,  En-ki  (Ea),  En-zu  (Sin),  Nin- 
girsu,  Nina,  Nin-si-a,  Ga-sig-dug,  Bau,  Ninni,  Utu  (Shamash), 
Pa-sag,  Gal-alim,  Dun-shagga,  Nin-Mar,  Dumuzi-zuaba,  Nin- 
gish-zida.  These  deities  may  be  taken  as  indicative  of  the 
territorial  extent  of  Gudea's  jurisdiction.  They  are  called  upon 
to  punish  him  who  attempts  to  alter  the  decrees  of  the  ruler,  or 
to  efface  the  memory  of  his  deeds.  Again,  at  the  beginning 
of  one  of  his  inscriptions,  he  appeals  to  Nin-girsu,  En-lil,  Nina, 

'  I  user.  I'.,  mis.  viii.  ix. 


GUDEA'S  PANTHEON.  107 

Bau,  Ga-sig-dug,  Gal-alim,  and  Dun-shagga.  He  recounts 
what  he  has  done  to  promote  the  cults  of  these  deities,  and 
upon  his  conduct  he  grounds  his  hope  that  they  will  aid  him  in 
his  undertakings.  The  lists,  as  will  be  observed,  vary  in  the 
number  and  in  the  order  of  the  gods  enumerated.  In  the 
second  list,  the  position  of  Nin-girsu  at  the  head  is  due  to  the 
fact  that  the  inscription  commemorates  the  dedication  of  a 
sanctuary  to  that  god.  But  Nin-girsu,  despite  his  rank  as  the 
chief  god  of  Lagash,  belongs  to  a  second  class  of  deities. 
Standing  far  above  him  is  the  triad,  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea,  the 
gods  that  personify,  as  we  have  seen,  the  great  divisions  of  the 
universe,  — -heaven,  earth,  and  water.  These  gods,  accordingly, 
take  precedence  of  Nin-girsu  in  the  first  list.  In  a  succeeding 
chapter,  the  significance  of  this  triad  for  the  Babylonian  religion 
will  be  fully  set  forth.  For  the  present,  it  is  sufficient  to  note 
that  the  systematization  of  popular  beliefs,  involved  in  the 
distinctions  thus  emphasized  in  the  groupings  of  deities  into 
classes,  begins  at  so  early  a  period.  This  systematization, 
however,  has  not  yet  assumed  final  shape.  True,  the  moon- 
god  has  already  been  given  the  place,  immediately  following 
upon  the  triad,  that  he  will  hold  in  the  developed  form  of  Baby- 
lonian theology  ;  but  while,  as  we  have  seen,  Sin  properly  takes 
precedence  of  the  sun-god,  the  latter  should  follow  in  the  wake 
of  his  associate.  Not  only,  however,  does  Nin-girsu  precede, 
but  two  other  deities  who  are  closely  related  in  general  char- 
acter to  the  '  warrior  deity '  of  Gudea's  dominion.  Then  the 
two  great  goddesses,  Bau  and  Ninni,  are  introduced,  and  it  is 
not  until  they  are  disposed  of  that  the  sun-god,  together  again 
with  Pa-sag  as  a  kind  of  lieutenant,1  is  invoked.  In  the 
arrangement  of  the  five  remaining  deities,  no  special  principle 
can  be  recognized.  They,  evidently,  occupy  a  minor  rank.  It 
is  possible,  then,  to  distinguish  no  less  than  four  classes  in  the 
old  Babylonian  pantheon:  (i)  the  great  triad,  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea  ; 

1  See  above,  p.  101. 


10S  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION 

(2)  a  second  group,  as  yet  incomplete,  but  which  will  eventually 
include  Sin,  Shamash,  and  Ramman,  representing  the  great 
powers  of  nature  —  moon,  sun,  and  storm  ;  (3)  the  great  gods, 
the  patron  deities  of  the  more  important  political  centers  of 
the  country ;  and  (4)  the  minor  ones,  representing  the  local 
cults  of  less  important  places.  Naturally,  the  dividing  line 
between  the  two  last-named  classes  is  not  sharply  marked,  and 
in  accordance  with  the  ever-varying  political  kaleidoscope,  local 
deities  will  rise  from  the  rank  of  minor  gods  to  a  higher  place 
in  the  pantheon  ;  while  such  as  once  enjoyed  high  esteem  will, 
through  decline  in  the  political  fortunes  of  their  worshippers, 
be  brought  down  from  the  higher  to  an  inferior  rank.1  It  is 
this  constant  interaction  between  the  political  situation  and  the 
relationship  of  the  gods  to  one  another,  that  constitutes  one  of 
the  most  striking  features  of  the  religion  of  Babylonia  and 
Assyria.  In  the  course  of  time,  as  an  organized  pantheon 
leads  to  greater  stability  in  the  domain  of  theological  specula- 
tion, the  influence  of  the  politics  of  the  country  on  the  religion 
becomes  less  marked,  without,  however,  disappearing  altogether. 
The  various  classes  into  which  the  gods  are  divided,  are  definitely 
fixed  by  the  schools  of  theology  that,  as  we  shall  see,  take 
their  rise  in  the  Euphrates  Valley.  The  rivalry,  on  the  one 
hand,  between  the  Babylonian  empire  united  under  one  head, 
and  the  Assyrian  empire  on  the  other,  alone  remains  to  bring- 
about  an  occasional  exchange  of  places  between  the  two  gods 
who  stand  at  the  head  of  the  great  gods  of  the  Babylonian  and 
Assyrian  pantheon  respectively.  The  attempt  has  been  made 
by  Amiaud2  to  arrange  the  pantheon  of  this  oldest  period  in  a 
genealogical  order.  In  Gudea's  long  list  of  deities,  he  detects 
three  generations,-  the  three  chief  gods  and  one  goddess,  as 
the  progenitors  of   Sin,    Shamash,  Nin-girsu,    Bau,  and  others. 

1  See  Winclder's  excellent  remarks  on  the  relationship  between  the  city  and  the  god 
in  ancient  Babylonia  {Altorientalische  Forschungen,  iii.  232-235). 
-  Records  of  the  Past,  n.s.,  i.  57-59. 


GUDEA'S   PANTHEON.  109 

The  gods  of  this  second  division  give  rise  to  a  third  class, 
viewed  again  as  the  offspring  of  the  second.  Professor  Davis, 
taking  up  this  idea  of  Amiaud,  has  quite  recently  maintained x 
that  the  family  idea  must  form  our  starting-point  for  an  under- 
standing of  the  pantheon  of  Lagash.  The  theory,  however, 
does  not  admit  of  consistent  application.  There  are  gods,  as 
Amiaud  recognized,  who  cannot  be  brought  under  his  scheme, 
so  far  at  least  as  present  testimony  is  concerned  ;  and  others 
can  only  by  an  arbitrary  assumption  be  forced  into  accord  with 
the  theory.  Moreover,  we  should  expect  to  find  traces  of  this 
family  idea  in  the  later  phases  of  the  Assyro-Babylonian  pan- 
theon. Such,  however,  is  not  the  case.  A  more  reasonable 
and  natural  explanation  of  the  relationship  existing  between 
many  —  not  all  —  of  the  gods  of  Gudea's  pantheon  has  already 
been  suggested.  In  part,  we  must  look  to  the  development  of 
a  theological  system  of  thought  in  the  Euphrates  Valley  to 
account  for  the  superior  position  accorded  to  certain  gods,  and 
in  part,  political  conditions  and  political  changes  afford  an 
explanation  for  the  union  of  certain  deities  into  a  family 
group.  So  far,  indeed,  Amiaud  is  correct,  that  the  relationship 
existing  between  the  various  deities,  was  as  a  rule  expressed  in 
terms  applicable  to  human  society.  The  secondary  position 
occupied,  e.g.,  by  Sin  when  compared  with  a  god  whose  domain 
is  the  entire  '  lower  regions,'  would  be  aptly  expressed  by 
calling  the  moon-god  the  eldest  son  of  En-lil  or  Bel ;  and, 
similarly,  a  goddess  like  Bau  would  be  called  the  daughter  of 
Anu.  It  is  a  mistake,  however,  to  interpret  the  use  of  5  daugh- 
ter '  and  '  son  '  literally.  Such  terms  are  employed  in  all  Semitic 
languages  in  a  figurative  sense,  to  indicate  a  dependent  position 
of  some  sort.  Again,  we  have  seen  that  the  union  of  a  number 
of  cities  or  states  under  one  head  would  be  followed  by  a  union 
of  the  deities  proper  to  these  cities  or  states.    That  union  would 

1  In  a  paper  on  "  The  Gods  of  Shirpurla,"  read  before  the  American  Oriental 
Society  in  April,  1S95.     (Proceedings,  ccxiii-ccxviii.) 


110  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION 

be  expressed,  according  to  circumstances,  either  by  placing  the 
deities  on  a  footing  of  equality  —  in  which  case  they  would  be 
consorts,  or  brothers  and  sisters,  offsprings  therefore  of  one 
and  the  same  god — or,  the  superior  rank  of  one  patron  god 
would  be  indicated  by  assigning  to  the  god  of  a  conquered  or 
subordinate  territory  the  rank  of  offspring  or  attendant. 

In  studying  such  a  list  as  that  presented  by  Gudea,  we  must, 
therefore,  make  due  allowance  for  what  may  be  called  local 
peculiarities  and  local  conditions.  It  is  only  by  comparing  his 
list  with  others  that  we  can  differentiate  between  the  general 
features  of  Babylonian  cults  and  the  special  features  due  to 
political  and  local  associations.  We  are  in  a  position  now  to 
institute  this  comparison  for  a  period  which  is  certainly  some 
centuries  earlier  than  Gudea.  The  date  of  the  reign  of  Lugal- 
zaggisi,  king  of  Uruk,  who  has  been  several  times  referred  to 
in  a  previous  chapter,  is  fixed  by  Hilprecht  at  c.  4500  B.C., 
but  it  is  doubtful  whether  so  high  an  age  will  be  accepted 
by  scholars.  The  chronology  for  the  period  beyond  Gudea  is 
still  in  a  very  uncertain  condition.  Lugal-zaggisi,  in  a  long  list 
of  deities  at  the  beginning  of  an  important  inscription,  enumer- 
ates in  succession  Ami,  the  goddess  Nisaba,  the  gods  En-lil 
(or  Bel),  En-ki  (=Ea),  En-zu  (Sin),  Utu  (the  sun-god),  the 
goddess  Ninni  (or  Nana[?]),  Nin-khar-sag,  Umu,  and  Nin-akha- 
kuddu.  As  for  Ann,  the  king  introduces  the  name,  as  Ur- 
Ningirsu  of  Lagash  does  (see  above,  p.  90),  in  calling  himself 
'  priest  of  Anu,'  and  which,  according  to  the  explanation  sug- 
gested, means  simply  '  divine  priest.' 

Bel,  Ea,  Sin,  and  Shamash  (or  Utu)  are  common  to  Gudea 
and  Lugal-zaggisi.  These  constitute,  then,  the  great  gods 
whose  worship  is  no  longer  limited  to  any  particular  district. 
They  have  become  common  property,  in  part  through  the  sanc- 
tity attached  to  the  places  where  the  gods  were  worshipped, 
in  part  through  the  antiquity  of  these  places,  and  in  part, 
no  doubt,  as  the  result  of  a  political  development  lying  behind 


GUDEA'S   PANTHEON.  Ill 

the  period  under  consideration.  The  prominence  given  by 
Lugal-zaggisi  to  Nisaba  is  rather  surprising.  He  calls  himself 
and  also  his  father,  •  hero '  of  Nisaba.  If,  however,  it  be  borne 
in  mind  that  of  the  goddesses  at  least  two,  Umu  and  Nin-akha- 
kuddu,  are  of  a  local  character,  the  conclusion  appears  justified 
that  Nisaba  was  a  goddess  associated  more  particularly  with 
the  district  in  which  Uruk  lay.  The  goddess  Ninni  (written 
simply  as  '  the  goddess  ')  is  no  doubt  identical  with  the  great 
Nana,  of  Uruk,  and  Nin-khar-sag  is  introduced  as  the  consort 
of  En-lil. 

As  a  result  of  this  comparison,  we  may  note  the  tendency 
towards  a  general  recognition  of  certain  great  gods,  which  is 
more  fully  developed  in  the  period  of  Hammurabi.  At  the 
same  time,  the  loyalty  of  the  rulers  to  the  gods,  peculiar  to  their 
own  district,  is  manifested  by  the  prominent  place  assigned  in 
the  several  cases  to  gods  who  otherwise  play  an  insignificant 
role,  and  who  eventually  are  absorbed  by  others;  and  lastly,  as 
between  Lugal-zaggisi  and  Gudea,  the  observation  may  be 
made  of  the  disposition  to  emphasize  local  gods,  less  for  their 
own  sake,  than  because  of  the  eclat  furnished  by  the  enumeration 
of  a  large  pantheon,  which  shall  be  coequal  in  extent  and 
dignity  to  the  district  claimed  by  the  rulers  and  to  the  rank 
assumed  by  them. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

SUMMARY. 

We  have  thus  passed  in  review  the  old  Babylonian  pantheon, 
so  far  as  the  discovered  texts  have  revealed  their  names 
and  epithets.  The  list  does  not  claim  to  be  exhaustive. 
That  future  texts  will  add  to  its  length,  by  revealing  the 
existence  at  this  early  period  of  many  known  to  us  at 
present  only  from  later  texts  or  from  the  religious  literature,1 
is  more  than  likely.  The  nature  of  the  old  Babylonian  religion 
entails,  as  a  necessary  consequence,  an  array  of  gods  that 
might  be  termed  endless.  Local  cults  would  ever  tend  to 
increase  with  the  rise  of  new  towns,  and  while  the  deities  thus 
worshipped  would  not  rise  to  any  or  much  importance,  still 
their  names  would  become  known  in  larger  circles,  and  a  ruler 
might,  for  the  sake  of  increasing  his  own  lustre,  make  mention 
of  one  or  more  of  them,  honoring  them  at  the  same  time  by 
an  epithet  which  might  or  might  not  accurately  define  their 
character.  As  long  as  the  various  districts  of  Babylonia  were 
not  formally  united  under  one  head,  various  local  cults  might 
rise  to  equally  large  proportions,  while  the  gods  worshipped 
as  the  special  patrons  of  the  great  centers,  as  Lagash,  IT, 
Uruk,  Nippur,  and  the  like,  would  retain  their  prominence, 
even  though   the  political  status  of  the  cities  sacred  to  them 

1  Quite  recently  there  have  been  found  at  Telloh  some  thirty  thousand  clay  tablets, 

chiefly  lists  of  sacrifices,  temple  inventories,  and  legal  documents.  These  tablets 
will  probably  furnish  additional  names  of  deities,  and  perhaps  throw  further  light  on 
those  known.  Further  excavations  at  Nippur  will  likewise  add  to  the  material. 
But  alter  all,  for  our  main  purpose  in  this  chapter,  which  is  the  illustration  of 
the  chief  traits  of  the  Babylonian  pantheon  in  early  days,  these  expected  additions 
to  the  pantheon  will  not  be  of  paramount  significance. 


SUMMARY.  113 

suffered  a  decline.  The  ruler  of  the  district  that  claimed  a 
supremacy  over  one  that  formerly  occupied  an  independent 
position,  would  hasten  to  emphasize  this  control  by  proudly 
claiming  the  patron  deity  as  part  of  his  pantheon.  The  popu- 
larity of  Sin  at  Ur  suffered  no  diminution  because  the  supremacy 
of  Ur  yielded  to  that  of  Uruk.  On  the  contrary,  the  god  gained 
new  friends  who  strove  to  rival  the  old  ones  in  manifestations 
of  reverence  ;  and  when,  as  happened  in  several  instances,  the 
patron  deities  were  personifications  of  natural  phenomena,  whose 
worship  through  various  circumstances  became  associated  with 
particular  localities,  there  was  an  additional  reason  for  the 
survival,  and,  indeed,  growing  importance  of  such  local  cults, 
quite  independent  of  the  political  fortunes  that  befell  the  cities 
in  which  the  gods  were  supposed  to  dwell. 

As  a  consequence,  there  are  a  considerable  number  of  deities 
who  are  met  with  both  at  the  beginning  and  at  the  end  of  the 
first  period  of  Babylonian  history —  a  period,  be  it  remembered, 
that,  so  far  as  known,  already  covers  a  distance  of  2,000 
years.  These  are  of  two  classes,  (a)  deities  of  purely  local 
origin,  surviving  through  the  historical  significance  of  the 
places  where  they  were  worshipped,  and  (b)  deities,  at  once 
local  in  so  far  as  they  are  associated  with  a  fixed  spot,  but  at 
the  same  time  having  a  far  more  general  character  by  virtue  of 
being  personifications  of  the  powers  of  nature.  The  jurisdic- 
tion of  both  classes  of  deities  might,  through  political  vicissi- 
tudes, be  extended  over  a  larger  district  than  the  one  to  which 
they  were  originally  confined,  and  in  so  far  their  local  character 
would  tend  to  be  obscured.  It  would  depend,  however,  upon 
other  factors,  besides  the  merely  political  ones,  whether  these 
cults  would  take  a  sufficiently  deep  hold  upon  the  people  to 
lead  to  the  evolution  of  deities,  entirely  dissociated  from  fixed 
seats,  who  might  be  worshipped  anywhere,  and  whose  attri- 
butes would  tend  to  become  more  and  more  abstract  in  charac- 
ter.    Such  a  process,  however,  could  not  be  completed  by  the 


114  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

silent  working  of  what,  for  want  of  a  better  name,  we  call 
the  genius  of  the  people.  It  requires  the  assistance,  conscious 
and  in  a  measure  pedantic,  of  the  thinkers  and  spiritual  guides 
of  a  people.  In  other  words,  the  advance  in  religious  concep- 
tions from  the  point  at  which  we  find  them  when  the  union  of 
the  Babylonian  states  takes  place,  is  conditioned  upon  the 
infusion  of  the  theological  spirit  into  the  mass  of  beliefs  that 
constituted  the  ancient  heritage  of  the  people. 

On  the  other  hand,  various  circumstances  have  already  been 
suggested  that  cooperated,  already  prior  to  the  days  of  Ham- 
murabi, in  weeding  out  the  superfluity  of  deities,  at  least  so 
far  as  recognition  of  them  in  the  official  inscriptions  of  the 
rulers  were  concerned.  Deities,  attached  to  places  of  small 
and  ever-diminishing  importance  would,  after  being  at  first 
adopted  into  the  pantheon  by  some  ruler  desirous  of  emphasiz- 
ing his  control  over  the  town  in  question,  end  in  being  entirely 
absorbed  by  some  more  powerful  god,  whose  attributes  were 
similar  to  those  of  his  minor  companion.  Especially  would 
this  be  the  case  with  deities  conceived  as  granting  assistance 
in  warfare.  The  glory  of  the  smaller  warrior  gods  would  fade 
through  the  success  achieved  by  a  Nin-girsu.  The  names  and 
epithets  would  be  transferred  to  the  more  powerful  god,  and, 
beyond  an  occasional  mention,  the  weaker  would  entirely  pass 
out  of  consideration.  Again,  the  worship  of  the  moon  or  of 
the  sun,  or  of  certain  aspects  of  the  sun,  —  the  morning  sun, 
the  noonday  sun,  and  the  like,  —  at  localities  of  minor  impor- 
tance, would  yield  to  the  growing  popularity  of  similar  worship 
in  important  centers.  As  a  consequence,  names  that  formerly 
designated  distinct  deities  or  different  phases  of  one  and  the 
same  deity,  would,  by  being  transferred  to  a  single  one,  come 
to  be  mere  epithets  of  this  one.  The  various  names  would  be 
used  interchangeably,  without  much  regard  to  their  original  force. 

All  the  essential  elements  of  the  Babylonian  religion  are 
already  to  be  found   in   the  conditions  prevailing  during    the 


SUMMARY.  115 

period  that  we  have  been  considering.  Some  new  deities  are 
met  with  in  the  periods  that  followed,  but  there  is  no  reason  to 
believe  that  any  profound  changes  in  the  manner  of  worship, 
or  in  the  conceptions  regarding  the  gods,  were  introduced. 
The  relations,  however,  which  the  gods  bear  to  one  another 
are  considerably  modified,  their  attributes  become  more  sharply 
defined,  the  duties  and  privileges  pertaining  to  each  are  regu- 
lated. Hand  in  hand  with  this  systematization,  the  organization 
of  the  cult  becomes  more  perfect,  the  ritual  enters  upon  further 
phases  of  development,  speculations  regarding  the  unknown  have 
their  outcome  in  the  establishment  of  dogmas.  Finally  the  past, 
with  its  traditions  and  legends,  is  viewed  under  the  aspect  of 
later  religious  thought.  The  products  of  popular  fancy  are 
reshaped,  given  a  literary  turn  that  was  originally  foreign  to 
them,  and  so  combined  and  imbued  with  a  meaning  as  to  re- 
fleet  the  thoughts  and  aspirations  of  a  comparatively  advanced 
age.  What  may  be  called  the  flowering  of  the  theological 
epoch  in  the  history  of  the  Babylonian  religion,  viewed  as  a 
unit,  is  so  directly  dependent  upon  the  political  union  of  the 
Babylonian  states,  brought  about  by  Hammurabi  (c.  2300  B.C.), 
that  it  may  be  said  to  date  from  this  event. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE   PANTHEON   IN  THE  DAYS    OF   HAMMURABI. 

Marduk. 

The  immediate  result  of  Hammurabi's  master-stroke  in  bring- 
ing the  various  states  of  the  Euphrates  Valley  under  a  single 
control,  was  the  supremacy  secured  for  his  capital,  of  the  city 
of  Babylon  over  all  other  Babylonian  cities,  and  with  this 
supremacy,  the  superior  position  henceforth  assumed  by  the 
patron  deity  of  the  capital,  Marduk.1  It  is  needless  for  our 
purposes  to  enter  upon  the  question  as  to  the  age  of  the  city 
of  Babylon,2  nor  as  to  its  political  fortunes  prior  to  the  rise  of 
the  dynasty  of  which  Hammurabi  was  the  sixth  member.  That 
its  beginnings  were  modest,  and  that  its  importance,  if  not  its 
origin,  was  of  recent  date  in  comparison  with  such  places  as 
Eridu,  Nippur,  Lagash,  Ur,  and  the  like,  is  proved  by  the  absence 
of  the  god  Marduk  in  any  of  the  inscriptions  that  we  have 
been  considering  up  to  this  point.  The  first  mention  of  the 
god  occurs  in  the  inscriptions  of  Hammurabi,  where  he  appears 
distinctly  as  the  god  of  the  city  of  Babylon.  No  doubt  the 
immediate   predecessors   of   Hammurabi    regarded   Marduk   in 

1  The  name  is  also  written  Ma-ru-duk,  which  points  to  its  having  been  regarded 
(for  which  there  is  other  evidence)  as  a  compound  of  maru,  '  son,'  and  an  element, 
duk(u),  which  in  religious  and  other  texts  designates  the  '  glorious  chamber'  in  which 
the  god  determines  the  fate  of  humanity.  Such  an  'etymology  :  is.  however,  merely 
a  play  upon  the  name,  similar  to  the  plays  upon  proper  names  found  in  the  Old 
Testament.  The  real  etymology  is  unknown.  The  form  Marduk  is  Semitic,  and 
points  to  an  underlying  stem,  rdk.  Marduk  appears  under  a  variety  of  names  which 
will  be  taken  up  at  their  proper  place.  See  Schrader's  -  Issyrisi  h-Babyl.  Keilschriften, 
p.  129:  and  the  same  author's  Cuneiform  Inscrip.  and  the  O.  T.  (p.  422)  for  other 
etymologies. 

2  Hommel's  view  that  Gish-galla,  in  (iudea's  inscriptions,  is  Babylon  lacks  convin- 
cing evidence,  but  the  city  may  be  as  old  as  <  Iudea's  days  for  all  that. 


THE   PANTHEON  IN   THE   DAYS    OF  HAMMURABI.    117 

the  same  light  as  the  great  conqueror,  so  that  we  are  justified 
in  applying  the  data,  furnished  by  the  inscriptions  of  Hammu- 
rabi to  such  of  his  predecessors,  of  whom  records  are  still 
lacking.  It  is  to  Marduk,  that  Hammurabi  ascribes  his  suc- 
cess. The  king  regards  himself  as  the  beloved  of  Marduk. 
The  god  rejoices  his  heart  and  gives  him  power  and  plenty. 
Even  when  paying  his  homage  at  the  shrines  of  other  deities, 
he  does  not  forget  to  couple  the  name  of  Marduk  with  that  of 
the  deity  whose  protection  he  invokes.  So  at  Sippar,  sacred  to 
Shamash,  and  where  the  king  deposits  a  cylinder  recording  the 
improvements  that  he  instigated  in  the  city,  he  associates  the 
sun-god  with  Marduk,  whereas  in  contradistinction  to  the  rulers 
of  the  old  Babylonian  cities  or  states,  when  addressing  Marduk, 
he  does  not  find  it  necessary  to  make  mention  at  the  same 
time  of  an  entire  pantheon.  Marduk's  protection  suffices  for 
all  purposes.  This,  of  course,  does  not  exclude  the  worship  of 
other  gods.  A  reference  has  already  been  made  to  the  king's 
care  for  the  city  of  Shamash.  In  this  respect,  he  was  but 
following  the  example  of  his  predecessors,  who,  while  regarding 
Babylon  as  their  capital,  were  zealous  in  doing  honor  to  ancient 
centers  of  worship.  So  one  of  these  predecessors,  Zabu, 
restores  the  temple  of  Shamash  at  Sippar,  and  that  of  Anunit 
at  Agade.  Hammurabi,  besides  his  work  at  Sippar,  builds 
a  temple  to  Ninni  at  Hallabi.1  Babylon,  however,  is  the 
beloved  city  of  Marduk,  and  upon  its  beautification  and 
improvement  Hammurabi  expends  his  chief  energy.  Such  are 
the  endearing  terms  in  which  he  speaks  of  his  god,  as  to  give 
one  the  impression  that,  when  thinking  of  Marduk,  the  king 
for  the  moment  loses  sight  of  the  existence  of  other  gods. 
The  most  striking  tribute,  however,  that  is  paid  to  Marduk  in 
the  period  of  Hammurabi  is  his  gradual  assumption  of  the 
role  played  by  the  old  En-lil  or  Bel  of  Nippur,  once  the 
head    of    the     Babylonian    pantheon.       This    identification    is 

l  Near  Sippar. 


118  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

already  foreshadowed  in  the  title  belli  rabu,  i.e.,  'great  lord,' 
which  Hammurabi  is  fond  of  bestowing  upon  Marduk.  It  is 
more  clearly  indicated  in  an  inscription  of  his  son,  Samsu-iluna, 
who  represents  Bel,  '  the  king  of  heaven  and  earth,'  as  trans- 
ferring to  Marduk,  the  '  first-born  son  of  Ea,'  rulership  over 
'  the  four  regions,'  -  -  a  phrase  that  at  this  time  had  already 
assumed  a  much  wider  meaning  than  its  original  portent.  In 
the  religious  literature  of  this  age,  which  reflects  the  same 
tendency,  Bel  expressly  transfers  his  title  '  lord  of  the  lands '  l 
to  Marduk,  while  Ea  likewise  pays  homage  to  his  son,  declaring 
that  the  latter's  '  name  '  shall  also  be  Ea.  The  transference  of 
the  name,  according  to  Babylonian  notions,  is  equivalent  to  a 
transference  of  power.  As  a  consequence,  Bel  and  Marduk 
are  blended  into  one  personage,  Marduk  becoming  known  as 
Bel-Marduk,  and  finally,  the  first  part  of  the  compound  sinking 
to  the  level  of  a  mere  adjective,  the  god  is  addressed  as  '  lord 
Marduk,'  or  '  Marduk,  the  lord.'  The  old  Bel  is  entirely  for- 
gotten, or  survives  at  best  in  conventional  association  with 
Anu  and  Ea,   as  a  member  of  the  ancient  triad. 

It  has  been  satisfactorily  shown  2  that  Marduk  was  originally 
a  solar  deity.  His  association  with  Babylon,  therefore,  must 
be  viewed  in  the  same  light  as  the  association  of  Sin,  the 
moon-god,  with  the  city  of  Ur,  and  the  association  of  Shamash, 
the  sun-god,  with  Larsa  and  Sippar.  Just  as  in  the  latter 
places,  other  cults  besides  that  of  the  patron  deity  prevailed, 
so  in  Babylon  it  was  merely  the  prominence  which,  for  some 
reason,  the  worship  of  the  sun-god  acquired,  that  led  to  the 
closer  identification  of  this  particular  deity  with  the  city,  until 
he  became  viewed  as  the  god  par  excellence  of  the  city,  and  the 
city  itself  as  his  favorite  residence.  As  long  as  Larsa  and 
Sippar  retained  a  prominence  overshadowing  that  of  Babylon, 

1  /.',','  mat&ti. 

-  Sayce,  Religion  of  the  Ancient  Babylonians^  pp.  98  sea. ;  Jensen,  Kosmologie  der 
Babylonier,  \>.  88. 


THE   PANTHEON  IN   THE   DAYS   OE  HAMMURABI.    119 

the  sun  cult  at  the  latter  place  could  attract  but  little  attention. 
Only  as  Babylon  began  to  rival,  and  finally  to  supersede,  other 
centers  of  sun-worship,  could  Marduk  be  brought  into  the 
front  rank  of  prevailing  cults.  It  may  appear  strange,  in  view 
of  this  original  character  of  Marduk,  that  neither  in  the  inscrip- 
tions of  Hammurabi,  nor  in  those  of  his  successors,  is  there 
any  direct  reference  to  his  qualities  as  a  solar  deity.  However, 
in  the  ideographs  composing  his  name,  which  are  to  be  inter- 
preted as  '  child  of  the  day,' 1  and  in  the  zodiacal  system,  as 
perfected  by  the  Babylonian  scholars,  there  lurk  traces  of  the 
god's  solar  origin.  Beyond  this,  perhaps,  in  certain  set  phrases, 
surviving  in  prayers  addressed  to  him.  The  explanation  for 
this  absence  of  solar  traits  is  to  be  sought  in  the  peculiar 
political  conditions  that  resulted  in  bringing  Marduk  into  such 
prominence.  Hammurabi  was  preeminently  a  conquering  king. 
He  waged  war  on  all  sides,  and  carried  on  his  campaigns  for 
many  years.  When  he  finally  succeeded  in  bringing  both 
North  and  South  Babylonia  under  his  sway,  it  still  required 
constant  watching  to  keep  his  empire  together.  His  patron 
god,  therefore,  the  protector  of  the  city,  whose  jurisdiction  was 
thus  spread  over  a  larger  extent  of  territory  than  that  of  any 
other  deity,  must  have  appeared  to  Hammurabi  and  his  follow- 
ers, as  well  as  to  those  vanquished  by  him,  essentially  as  a 
warrior.  It  is  he  who  hands  over  to  kings  the  land  and  its 
inhabitants.  The  fact  that  he  was  a  solar  deity  would  become 
obscured  by  the  side  of  the  more  potent  fact  that,  as  god  of  the 
city  of  Babylon,  his  sway  was  supreme.  He  therefore  became 
Marduk,  the  'great  lord.'  The  epithets  bestowed  upon  him 
naturally  emphasized  the  manner  in  which  he  manifested  him- 
self, and  these  epithets,  therefore,  referred  to  his  power,  to  his 
supremacy  over  other  gods,  to  his  favor  shown  to  his  worship- 

1  So  Delitzsch,  Beitrdgc  zitr  Assyriologie,  ii.  623.  The  first  part  of  the  name  is 
also  used  to  designate  the  '  young  bullock,'  and  it  is  possible,  therefore,  that  the  god 
was  pictured  in  this  way,  as  both  Anu  and  Sin  are  occasionally  called  '  bulls.' 


120  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

pers  by  granting  them  unprecedented  glory;  and  since  the 
political  supremacy  remained  undisputed  for  many  centuries, 
no  opportunity  was  afforded  for  ever  reverting  to  the  attributes 
of  the  god  as  a  solar  deity.  He  remained  —  if  one  may  so 
express  it  —  a  political  deity.  The  political  significance  of 
Babylon  permitted  only  one  phase  of  his  nature  to  be  brought 
forward. 

In  the  religious  texts,  however,  preserving  as  they  do  the 
more  primitive  conceptions  by  the  side  of  the  most  advanced 
ones,  some  traces  of  other  attributes  besides  prowess  in  war 
are  found.  By  virtue  of  his  character  as  a  solar  deity,  Marduk, 
like  the  orb  personified  through  him,  is  essentially  a  life-giving 
god.  Whereas  Shamash  is  viewed  as  the  'judge  of  mankind,' 
Marduk  becomes  the  god  who  restores  the  dead  to  life,  though 
he  shares  this  power  with  Shamash,  Gula,  Nebo,  and  Nergal. 
But  after  all,  even  in  the  religious  texts,  his  more  prominent 
role  is  that  of  a  ruler,  —  a  magnified  king.  He  protects  the 
weak,  releases  the  imprisoned,  and  makes  great  the  small. 
He  controls  by  his  powerful  hand  the  mountains  and  rivers  and 
fountains.  He  is  the  counsellor  who  guides  the  decrees,  even 
of  the  great  gods,  Anu  and  Bel.  On  his  head  rests  a  crown 
with  high  horns,  as  the  symbol  of  rulership.  As  the  supreme 
ruler,  life  and  death  are  in  his  hands.  Blessings  flow  from 
him ;  and  of  awe-inspiring  appearance,  his  wrath  inflicts  severe 
punishment  on  the  evil-doer. 

It  is  a  noteworthy  circumstance,  and  characteristic  of  the 
phase  of  the  Babylonian  religion  which  we  are  considering, 
that  the  extension  of  Marduk's  political  sway  did  not  lead  to 
the  establishment  of  Marduk  cults  outside  of  Babylon.  One 
reason  for  this  was  that,  in  accordance  with  the  political  con- 
ceptions, dwelt  upon  in  the  introductory  chapter,  the  empire  of 
Babylonia  was  regarded  simply  as  an  extension  of  the  city  of 
Babylon.  liabylonia,  therefore,  being  identified  in  theory  with 
the  city  of    Babylon,   there  was  no   need   of  emphasizing  the 


THE   PANTHEON  IN   THE   DAYS   OF  HAMMURABI.    121 

power  of  Marduk  by  establishing  his  cult  elsewhere.  Within  the 
limits  of  Babylon,  however,  there  might  be  more  than  one  shrine 
to  Marduk,  and  accordingly,  when  the  city  was  extended  so  as 
to  include  the  place  known  as  Borsippa,  a  temple  to  Marduk  was 
also  erected  there.  The  temple  on  the  east  side  of  the  Euphrates, 
known  as  E-Sagila,  'the  lofty  house,'  was  the  older,  and  dates 
probably  from  the  beginnings  of  Babylon  itself;  that  in  Bor- 
sippa, known  as  E-Zida,  '  the  true  house,'  seems  to  have  been 
founded  by  Hammurabi.1  While  it  was  not  in  accord  with  the 
dignity  attaching  to  Marduk  that  his  cult  should  be  established 
outside  of  the  precincts  of  the  city  of  Babylon,  it  would  only 
add  to  his  glory  to  have  the  worship  of  other  deities  grouped 
around  his  own  sanctuary.  Such  a  course  would  emphasize  the 
central  position  of  Marduk  among  the  gods,  and  accordingly, 
we  find  that  the  chief  gods  of  Babylonia  are  represented  by 
shrines  within  the  sacred  precincts  of  his  great  temples  at 
Babylon  and  Borsippa.  First  among  these  shrines  is  that  of 
Marduk's  consort, 

Sarpanitum. 

Neither  Hammurabi  nor  his  immediate  successor  make  men- 
tion of  Sarpanitum,  and  at  no  time  does  she  appear  independ- 
ently of  Marduk.  The  glory  of  Marduk  did  not  permit  of 
any  rival,  and  so  his  consort  becomes  merely  his  shadow,  — 
less  significant  than  most  of  the  consorts  of  the  male  deities. 
Her  name,  signifying  the  '  silvery  bright  one,'  evidently  stands 
in  some  connection  with  the  solar  character  of  her  consort. 
Popular  etymology,  by  a  play  upon  the  name,  made  of  Sarpanitum 
(as  though  Zer-banit)  the  '  offspring-producing  '  goddess.  She 
had  her  shrine  within  the  precincts  of  the  great  temple  E-Sagila, 
but  we  are  not  told  of  any  special  honors  being  paid  her,  nor  do 
we  find  her  invoked  to  any  extent  in  incantations  or  in  votive 
inscriptions.      Agumkakrimi,  or  Agum    (as  he   is   also   called), 

1  Louvre  Inscription  II,  col.  ii.  11.  12-17. 


122  BA  B  YL  OA  rIAN-A  A'.s  )  R  TAN  REL IGION. 

who  rules  about  five  centuries  after  Hammurabi,  speaks  of 
having  recovered  the  image  of  Sarpanitum,  and  that  of  Marduk, 
out  of  the  hands  of  a  mountainous  people  living  to  the  north- 
west of  Babylonia,  in  the  district  between  the  Bay  of  Iskenderun 
and  the  Euphrates.  The  capture  of  the  statues  of  the  patron 
gods  points  to  a  great  humiliation  which  Babylon  must  have 
encountered.  Upon  receiving  a  favorable  omen  from  the  sun- 
god,  Agum  undertakes  the  task  of  bringing  Marduk  and  Sar- 
panitum back  to  their  seats.  Their  temples,  too,  at  Babylon 
appear  to  have  suffered  damage  during  the  invasion  of  the  city, 
and  accordingly  the  statues  are  placed  in  the  temple  of  Shamash 
pending  the  restoration  of  E-Sagila.  Agum  dwells  at  length 
upon  the  handsome  garments  and  head-dress,  studded  with 
precious  stones,  that  he  prepared  for  the  god  and  his  consort. 
In  all  this  description,  one  feels  that  it  is  Marduk  for  whom 
the  honors  are  intended,  and  that  Sarpanitum  is  of  less  than 
secondary  importance,  —  shining  merely  by  the  reflected  glory 
of  her  great  liege,  whose  presence  in  Babylon  was  essential  to 
a  restoration  of  Babylon's  position. 

There  are  reasons  for  believing,  however,  that  Sarpanitum 
once  enjoyed  considerable  importance  of  her  own,  that  prior  to 
the  rise  of  Marduk  to  his  supreme  position,  a  goddess  was 
worshipped  in  Babylon,  one  of  whose  special  functions  it  was 
to  protect  the  progeny  while  still  in  the  mother's  womb.  A  late 
king  of  Babylon,  the  great  Nebuchadnezzar,  appeals  to  this  attri- 
bute of  the  goddess.  To  her  was  also  attributed  the  possession 
of  knowledge  concealed  from  men.  Exactly  to  what  class  of 
deities  she  belonged,  we  are  no  longer  able  to  say,  but  it  is 
certain  that  at  some  time,  probably  about  the  time  of  Hammurabi, 
an  amalgamation  took  place  between  her  and  another  goddess 
known  as  Erua,1  —  a  name  that  etymologically  suggests  the  idea 

1  There  is  also  a  goddess  Eria  worshipped  in  Elam,  who  may  be  identical  with 
Erua.  The  scribes  in  the  daj  s  o\  Nebuchadnezzar  (c.  1140  n.<  .).  at  least,  appear  to 
have  thought  so,  for  the)  associate  her  with  Bel,  just  as  Sarpanitum  is  associated 
with  Bel-Marduk.     (See  the  inscription  V  K.  57,  col.  ii.  11.  11,  12.) 


THE   PANTHEON  IN   THE   DAYS   OE  HAMMURABI.    123 

of  'begetting.'1  She  is  represented  as  dwelling  in  the  temple 
of  E-Zida  at  Borsippa,  and  was  originally  the  consort  of  Nabu, 
the  chief  god  of  this  place."  A  late  ruler  of  Babylon  — 
Shamash-shumukin  —  calls  her  the  queen  of  the  gods,  and 
declares  himself  to  have  been  nominated  by  her  to  lord  it  over 
men. 

A  factor  in  this  amalgamation  of  Erua  and  Sarpanitum  was 
the  close  association  brought  about  in  Babylon  between  Marduk 
and  a  god  whose  seat  was  originally  at  the  Persian  Gulf  —  Ea. 
The  cult*  of  this  god,  as  we  shall  see,  survived  in  Babylonia 
through  all  political  vicissitudes,  and  so  did  that  of  some  other 
minor  water-deities  that  belong  to  this  region.  Among  these 
was  Erua,  whose  worship  centered  in  one  of  the  islands  in  or 
near  the  gulf.  Wisdom  and  the  life-giving  principle  were  two 
ideas  associated  in  the  Babylonian  mind  with  water.  As 
inferior  in  power  to  Ea,  Erua  appears  to  have  been  regarded 
as  the  daughter  of  Ea,  and  such  was  the  sway  exercised  by  Ea 
over  men's  minds,  that  even  the  Babylonian  schoolmen  did  not 
venture  to  place  Marduk  over  Ea,  but  pictured  him  as  Ea's 
son.  Erua,  however,  was  not  prominent  enough  to  become 
Marduk's  mother,  and  so  she  was  regarded  as  his  consort.  In 
this  capacity  she  was  associated  with  Sarpanitum,  and  the  two 
were  merged  into  one  personality.  It  rarely  happens  that  all 
the  links  in  such  a  process  are  preserved,  but  in  this  case,  the 
epithets  borne  by  Sarpanitum-Erua,  such  as  '  lady  of  the  deep,' 
'  mistress  of  the  place  where  the  fish  dwell,'  '  voice  of  the  deep,' 
point  the  way  towards  the  solution  of  the  problem  involved  in 
the  amalgamation  of  Erua  and  Sarpanitum.3 

1  Whether,  however,  this  was  the  real  meaning  of  the  name  is  doubtful,  for  the 
name  of  the  goddess  is  also  written  Aru  and  Arua,  which  points  to  a  different  verbal 
stem. 

2  See  below  under  Tashmitum. 

3  There  are  indications  also  of  an  arrested  amalgamation  of  Erua-Sarpanitum  with 
Tashmitum,  the  wife  of  Nabu.     (See  Sayce,  Hibbert  Lectures,  p.  112.) 


124  babylonian-assyrian  religion. 

Nabu. 

The  god  Nabu  (or  Nebo)  enjoys  a  great  popularity  in  the 
Babylonian  cult,  but  he  owes  his  prestige  to  the  accident  that, 
as  god  of  Borsippa,  he  was  associated  with  Marduk.  Indeed, 
his  case  is  a  clear  instance  of  the  manner  in  which  Marduk 
overshadows  all  his  fellows.  Only  as  they  are  brought  into 
some  manner  of  relationship  with  him  do  they  secure  a  position 
in  the  pantheon  during  this  second  period  of  Babylonian  his- 
tory. Since  Nabu's  position  in  the  pantheon,  once  established, 
incurs  but  little  change,  it  will  be  proper,  in  treating  of  him, 
to  include  the  testimony  furnished  by  the  historical  records  of 
the  Assyrian  kings.  The  most  prominent  attribute  of  Nabu, 
at  least  in  the  later  phases  of  the  Babylonian  religion,  is  that 
of  wisdom.  He  is  the  wise,  the  all-knowing.  He  embodies  in 
his  person  all  the  wisdom  of  the  gods.  To  him  the  Assyrian 
kings  are  particularly  fond  of  ascribing,  not  merely  the  under- 
standing that  they  possess,  but  the  thought  of  preserving  the 
wisdom  of  the  past  for  future  ages  ;  and  in  doing  this  the 
Assyrians  were  but  guided  by  examples  furnished  by  the  south. 
Wisdom  being  associated,  in  the  minds  of  the  Babylonians,  with 
the  watery  deep,  .one  is  tempted  to  seek  an  aqueous  origin  for 
Nabu.  Such  a  supposition,  although  it  cannot  be  positively 
established,  has  much  in  its  favor.  It  is  not  necessary,  in  order 
to  maintain  this  proposition,  to  remove  Nabu  from  Borsippa. 
The  alluvial  deposits  made  by  the  Euphrates  yearly  have 
already  demonstrated  that  Babylon  lay  much  nearer  at  one 
time  to  the  Persian  Gulf  than  it  does  at  present.  The  original 
seat  of  Ea,  whose  worship  continued  through  all  times  to  enjoy 
great  popularity  at  Babylon,  was  at  Eridu,  which,  we  know, 
once  lay  on  the  Persian  Gulf,  but  does  so  no  longer.  The 
similarity  of  the  epithets  bestowed  in  various  texts  upon  Ea 
and  Nabu  point  most  decidedly  to  a  similar  starting-point  for 
both;   and  since  in  a  syllabary1  we  find  the  god  actually  identi- 

1  Rawlinson,  ii.  60,  30. 


THE   PANTHEON  IN    THE   DA  YS   OF  HAMMURABI.    125 

fled  with  a  deity  of  Dilmun,  —  probably  one  of  the  islands  near 
Bahrein,  —  there  are  grounds  for  assuming  that  a  tradition 
survived  among  the  schoolmen,  which  brought  Nabu  into  some 
connection  with  the  Persian  Gulf.  Sayce  x  has  already  sug- 
gested that  Borsippa  may  have  originally  stood  on  an  inlet  of 
the  Persian  Gulf.  Nabu  is  inferior  to  Ea,  and  were  it  not  for 
the  priority  of  Marduk,  he  would  have  become  in  Babylonian 
theology,  the  son  of  Ea.  Since  this  distinction  2  is  given  to 
Marduk,  no  direct  indication  of  an  original  relationship  to  Ea 
has  survived. 

But  besides  being  the  god  of  wisdom  and  intelligence,  Nabu 
is  a  patron  of  agriculture,  who  causes  the  grain  to  sprout  forth. 
In  religious  and  historical  texts,  he  is  lauded  as  the  deity  who 
opens  up  the  subterranean  sources  in  order  to  irrigate  the 
fields.  He  heaps  up  the  grain  in  the  storehouses,  and  on  the 
other  hand,  the  withdrawal  of  his  favor  is  followed  by  famine 
and  distress.  Jensen3  would  conclude  from  this  that  he  was 
originally  (like  Marduk,  therefore)  a  solar  deity.  This,  how- 
ever, is  hardly  justified,  since  it  is  just  as  reasonable  to  deduce 
his  role  as  the  producer  of  fertility  from  his  powers  as  lord  of 
some  body  of  water.  However  this  may  be,  in  the  case  of 
Nabu,  there  are  no  grounds  for  supposing  that  he  represents 
the  combination  of  two  originally  distinct  deities.  A  later  — 
chiefly  theoretical  —  amalgamation  of  Nabu  with  a  god  Nusku 
will  be  discussed  in  a  subsequent  chapter.4  Hammurabi  and  his 
immediate  successors,  it  is  noteworthy,  do  not  make  mention  of 
Nabu.  A  sufficient  number  of  inscriptions  of  this  period  exists 
to  make  it  probable  that  this  omission  is  not  accidental.  This 
dynasty  was  chiefly  concerned  in  firmly  establishing  the  position 
of  Marduk.  Other  deities  could,  indeed,  be  tolerated  at  his  side, 
provided  they  were  subservient  to  him  ;  but  Nabu,  the  god  of  a 
place  so  near  Babylon,  might  prove  a  dangerous  rival  because 

1  Hibbcrt  Lectures,  p.  117.  3  Kosmologie,  p.  239. 

2  See  further  on,  sub  Ea.  4  Sub  Nusku.  chapter  xiii. 


126  BAB  VI.  ON  I  AN- ASS J  AV.  IN   REL I  (HON. 

of  this  proximity.  The  city  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Euphrates 
was  probably  as  old  as  that  on  the  east,  if  not,  indeed,  older. 
It  did  not  seem  consistent  with  this  devotion  to  Marduk  that 
Hammurabi  and  his  successors  should  also  recognize  Nabu. 
Policy  dictated  that  Nabu  should  be  ignored,  that  the  attempt 
must  be  made  to  replace  his  worship,  even  in  Borsippa,  by  that 
of  Marduk.  Viewed  in  this  light,  Hammurabi's  establishment 
of  the  Marduk  cult  in  Borsippa  assumes  a  peculiar  significance. 
It  meant  that  Borsippa  was  to  be  incorporated  as  part  of  Baby- 
lon, and  that  Marduk  was  henceforth  to  take  the  place  occupied 
by  Nabu.  In  order  to  emphasize  this,  Hammurabi  actually 
transfers  the  name  of  Nabu's  temple  in  Borsippa,  E-Zida,  to  the 
one  erected  by  him  at  that  place  to  Marduk.  Did  he  perhaps 
entirely  suppress  the  worship  of  Nabu  at  Borsippa  ?  It  would 
almost  appear  so  from  Agum's  utter  omission  of  Nabu.  Only 
the  statues  of  Marduk  and  Sarpanitum  seem  to  have  been 
robbed  by  the  Hani.  Not  a  word  is  said  as  to  Nabu.  Either 
there  was  no  statue  at  the  time  at  Borsippa,  or  the  cult  was  of 
such  insignificance  that  the  capture  of  the  god  was  not  consid- 
ered of  sufficient  moment  to  occupy  the  thoughts  of  the  enemy, 
as  little  as  it  did  that  of  the  rulers  of  Babylon  at  the  time.  In 
the  inscription  in  which  Hammurabi  recounts  the  building  of 
E-Zida  in  Borsippa,  there  are  certain  expressions  which  go  to 
substantiate  the  proposition  that  Nabu  is  intentionally  ignored.1 
He  calls  Marduk  the  lord  of  E-Sagila  and  of  E-Zida  ;  he  speaks 
of  Borsippa  as  the  beloved  city  of  Marduk,  just  as  though  it 
were  Babylon.  Taking  unto  himself  the  functions  of  Nabu, 
he  even  appears  to  play  upon  the  name,  which  signifies  'pro- 

1  Tiele,  Geschichtc  J.  Religion  i.  Alterthum,  i.  171  and  188,  is  of  the  opinion  that 
Nabu  is  a  late  deitv  whose  worship  dates  from  a  period  considerablj  subsequent  to 
Hammurabi.  This  conclusion  from  the  non-occurrence  of  the  god  in  early  inscriptions 
is  not  justified.  There  is  no  reason  why  Nabu  should  haw-  been  added  as  a  deity 
in  later  times,  and  in  general  we  must  be  on  our  guard  against  assuming  new  deities 
subsequent  to  Hammurabi.  It  is  much  more  plausible  to  assume  the  restored 
popularity  of  very  old  ones. 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DA  YS  OE  HAMMURABI.     127 

claimer,'  and  styles  himself  the  nabiu  Ann,  'the  proclaimer  of 
Ami.'  However  this  may  be,  the  attempt  to  suppress  Nabu 
did  not  succeed,  —  a  proof  that  in  early  times  he  had  gained 
popular  favor.  He  had  to  be  readmitted  into  the  Babylonian 
pantheon,  though  in  a  subordinate  position  to  Marduk.  He 
took  his  place  in  the  theological  system  as  the  son  of  Marduk, 
and  on  the  great  festival  —  the  New  Year's  day  —  celebrated 
in  honor  of  the  great  god  of  Babylon,  the  son  shared  some  of 
the  honors  accorded  to  the  father.  In  time,  his  sanctuary  at 
Borsippa  was  again  recognized.  The  former  rivalry  gave  way 
to  a  cordial  entente.  Nabu  was  even  granted  a  chapel  in 
E-Sagila  at  Babylon,  to  which  likewise  the  name  of  E-Zida  was 
given.  Every  New  Year's  day  the  son  paid  a  visit  to  his 
father,  on  which  occasion  the  statue  of  Nabu  was  carried  in 
solemn  procession  from  Borsippa  across  the  river,  and  along 
the  main  street  of  Babylon  leading  to  the  temple  of  Marduk  ; 
and  in  return  the  father  deity  accompanied  his  son  part  way  on 
the  trip  back  to  E-Zida.  In  this  way,  due  homage  was  accorded 
to  Marduk,  and  at  the  same  time  the  close  and  cordial  bonds 
of  union  between  Babylon  and  Borsippa  found  satisfactory 
illustration.  E-Sagila  and  E-Zida  become,  and  remain  through- 
out the  duration  of  the  Babylonian  religion,  the  central  sanctua- 
ries of  the  land  around  which  the  most  precious  recollections 
cluster,  as  dear  to  the  Assyrians  as  to  the  Babylonians.  The 
kings  of  the  northern  empire  vie  with  their  southern  cousins  in 
beautifying  and  enlarging  the  structures  sacred  to  Marduk  and 
Nabu. 

In  view  of  the  explanation  offered  for  the  silence  maintained 
by  Hammurabi  and  his  successors  regarding  Nabu,  we  are 
justified  in  including  Nabu  in  the  Babylonian  pantheon  of 
those  clays.  In  later  times,  among  the  Assyrians,  the  Nabu 
cult,  as  already  intimated,  grows  in  popularity.  The  northern 
monarchs,  in  fact,  seem  to  give  Nabu  the  preference  over 
Marduk.     They  do  not  tire  of  proclaiming  him  as  the  source 


128  BAB  YLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

of  wisdom.  The  staff  is  his  symbol,  which  is  interpreted  in  a 
double  sense,  as  the  writer's  stylus  and  as  the  ruler's  sceptre. 
He  becomes,  also,  the  bestower  of  royal  power  upon  his  favorites. 
Without  his  aid,  order  cannot  be  maintained  in  the  land.  Diso- 
bedience to  him  is  punished  by  the  introduction  of  foreign  rule. 
Political  policy  may  have  had  a  share  in  this  preference  shown 
for  the  minor  god  of  Babylon.  The  Assyrian  kings  were 
always  anxious  to  do  homage  to  the  gods  of  Babylon,  in  order 
to  indicate  their  control  over  the  southern  districts.  They 
were  particularly  proud  of  their  title  'governor  of  Bel.'1  On 
the  other  hand,  they  were  careful  not  to  give  offence  to  the 
chief  of  the  Assyrian  pantheon,  —  the  god  Ashur,  —  by  paying 
too  much  honor  to  Marduk,  who  was  in  a  measure  Ashur's 
rival.  In  consequence,  as  Hammurabi  and  his  successors 
endeavored  to  ignore  Nabu,  the  Assyrian  rulers  now  turned 
the  tables  by  manifesting  a  preference  for  Nabu ;  and  obliged 
as  they  were  to  acknowledge  that  the  intellectual  impulses  came 
from  the  south,  they  could  accept  a  southern  god  of  wisdom 
without  encroaching  upon  the  province  of  Ashur,  whose  claims 
to  homage  lay  in  the  prowess  he  showed  in  war.  Marduk  was 
too  much  like  Ashur  to  find  a  place  at  his  side.  Nabu  was  a 
totally  different  deity,  and  in  worshipping  him  who  was  the  son 
of  Marduk,  the  Assyrian  kings  felt  that  they  were  paying  clue 
regard  to  the  feelings  of  their  Babylonian  subjects.  The  cult 
of  Nabu  thus  became  widely  extended  in  Assyria.  Statues  of 
the  god  were  erected  and  deposited  in  shrines  built  for  the 
purpose,  although  the  fact  was  not  lost  sight  of  that  the  real 
dwelling-place  of  the  god  was  in  Borsippa.  At  the  end  of  the 
ninth  century  B.C.  this  cult  seems  to  have  reached  its  height. 
We  learn  of  a  temple  at  Calah,  and  of  no  less  than  eight 
Statues  of  the  god  being  erected  in  the  clays  of  Ramman-nirari 
111.,  and  the  terms  in  which  the  god  is  addressed  might  lead 
one  to  believe  that  an  attempt  was  made  to  concentrate  the 
1  Bel  being  Marduk.  the  title  was  equivalent  to  that  of '  governor  of  Babylonia.' 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DA  IS  OF  HAMMURABI.     129 

cult  in  Assyria  on  him.1     This,  however,  was  an   impossibility. 
As  long  as  Assyria  continued  to  play  the  role  of  the  subduer 
of    nations,   Ashur  —  the    god    of    war  par  excellence  —  neces- 
sarily retained  his  position  at  the  head  of  the  Assyrian  pan- 
theon.    The  popularity  of  Nabu,  which  continued  to  the  end 
of  the  Assyrian  empire,  and  gained  a  fresh  impetus  in  the  days 
of  Ashurbanabal,  who,  as  a  patron  of  literature,  invokes  Nabu 
on  thousands  of  the  tablets  of  his  library  as  '  the  opener  of 
ears  to  understanding,'  reacted  on   his  position  in  the  Baby- 
lonian cult.     In  the  new  Babylonian  empire,  which  continued 
to  so  large  a  degree  the  traditions  of  Assyria,  it  is  no  accident 
that  three  of  the  kings  —  Nabupolassar,  Nebuchadnezzar,  and 
Nabonnedos  —  bear  names  containing  the  deity  as  one  of  the 
elements.     While   paying   superior   devotion   to  Marduk,  who 
once  more  became  the  real  and  not  merely  the  nominal  head 
of  the  pantheon,  they  must  have  held  Nabu  in  no  small  esteem  ; 
and  indeed  the  last-named  king  was  suspected  of  trying  actu- 
ally to  divert  the  homage  of  the  people  away  from  Marduk  to 
other  gods,  though  he  did  not,  as  a  matter  of  course,  go  so  far 
as  to  endeavor  to  usurp  for  the  son,  the  position  held  by  the 
father.     It  is  probably  due  to  Assyrian  influence  that  even  in 
Babylonia,  from  the  eighth  century  on,   Nabu  is  occasionally 
mentioned  before  Marduk.     So  Marduk-baladan  II.  (721-710) 
calls   himself   the  "worshipper    of    Nabu  and    Marduk,"   and 
similarly  others.      In  official  letters  likewise,  and  in  astronomical 
reports,  Nabu  is  given  precedence  to  Marduk,  but  this  may  be 
clue  to  Nabu's  functions,  as  the  god  of  writing  and  the  patron 
of  science. 

The  Neo-Babylonian  kings  are  not  sparing  in  the  epithets 
they  bestow  on  Nabu,  though  they  emphasize  more  his  qualities 
as  holder  of  the  'sceptre'  than  as  lord  of  the  'stylus.'  So 
Nebuchadnezzar  declares  that  it  is  he  '  who  gives  the  sceptre  of 
sovereignty  to  kings  to  rule  over  all  lands.'      In  this  capacity 

1  So,  Tiele,  Gcschichtc  d.  Religion  i.  Altcrt/iuin,  i.  191. 


130  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

he  is  '  the  upholder  of  the  world,'  '  the  general  overseer,'  and 
his  temple  is  called  '  the  house  of  the  sceptre  of  the  world.' 

His  name  signifies  simply  the  '  proclaimer,'  or  herald,  but 
we  are  left  in  doubt  as  to  what  he  proclaims,  —  whether  wisdom 
or  sovereignty.  Sometimes  he  appears  as  the  'herald'  of  the 
gods.  In  this  role  he  receives  the  name  of  Papsukal  (i.e., 
supreme  or  sacred  messenger),  and  it  may  be  that  this  function 
was  a  very  old  one.  But,  again,  as  god  of  fertility  he  could 
also  be  appropriately  termed  the  '  proclaimer.'  The  question 
must,  accordingly,  be  left  open  as  to  the  precise  force  of  the 
attribute  contained  in  his  name.  Finally,  an  interesting  feature 
connected  with  Nabu,  that  may  be  mentioned  here,  is  that  in 
the  name  borne  by  a  famous  mountain  in  Moab,  Nebo,  where 
Moses  —  himself  a  '  proclaimer  ' 1  —  died,  there  survives  a  testi- 
mony that  the  worship  of  this  popular  deity  extended  beyond 
the  Euphrates  and  the  Tigris,  to  Semites  living  considerably  to 
the  west.  To  Nabu,  as  to  Marduk,  a  consort  was  given.  Her 
name  was 

Tashmitum. 

The  name  Tashmitum  appears  for  the  first  time  in  the  days 
of  Hammurabi.  Attention  has  already  been  called  to  the  king's 
ignoring  of  the  god  of  Borsippa.  While  his  attempt  to  suppress 
the  cult  of  Nabu  was  not  successful,  he  did  succeed  in  causing 
the  old  consort  of  Nabu  to  disappear.  This  consort  appears 
to  have  been  no  other  than  Erua.  It  will  be  recalled  that  up 
to  very  late  times  the  tradition  survived  that  her  dwelling-place 
was  Borsippa.2  This  is  never  said  of  Sarpanitum.  Despite, 
therefore,  the  amalgamation  of  Sarpanitum  and  Erua,  the 
association   of  the    latter   with    Nabu's   dwelling-place  remains 

1  The  Hebrew  word  for  prophet,  nabi,  is  of  the  same  stem  as  the  Assyrian  Nabu, 
and  the  populai  tradition  in  placing  the  last  scene  in  the  life  oi  Moses  on  Mt.  Nebo 
is  apparently  influenced  by  the  fact  that  Muses  was  a  nabi. 

-  Sec  above,  \>.  123. 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DA  YS  OE  HAMMURABI.     131 

impressed  upon  the  memory  of  the  Babylonian  scholars,  at 
least.  Nabu's  consort  having  thus  been  transferred  to  Marduk, 
a  new  mate  had  to  be  found  for  the  former,  when  once  his 
rivalry  was  no  longer  to  be  dreaded,  and  his  cult  again  rose  to 
prominence.  '  Tashmitum '  is  an  abstract  noun  in  Assyrian, 
signifying  '  revelation.'  As  such,  it  is  bestowed  in  historical  texts 
upon  Nabu  himself,  who  is  called  ilu  taskmiti,  'god  of  revela- 
tion.' Nabu  is,  above  all,  a  'revealing'  god,  —  revealing 
knowledge,  the  art  of  writing,  and  the  method  of  ruling.  The 
appellation  is  therefore  a  most  appropriate  one,  and  there 
seems  little  reason  to  question  that  Tashmitum  was  originally 
nothing  but  one  of  the  terms  by  which  Nabu  was  designated, 
just  as  he  was  called  Papsukal  in  his  role  as  '  messenger'  of  the 
gods,  —  the  messenger  of  his  father  Marduk  and  of  his  grand- 
father Ea,  in  particular.  But  Tashmitum,  being  feminine  in 
gender,  as  an  abstract  noun,  seemed  appropriate  as  the  desig- 
nation of  a  goddess.  It  would  appear,  then,  that  '  Revelation,' 
from  being  so  constantly  associated  with  Nabu,  was  personified, 
dissociated  from  him,  as  it  were,  through  the  conception  of  a 
distinct  goddess  bearing  the  name  of  '  Tashmitum.'  This 
process  of  thought,  in  giving  rise  to  a  new  goddess,  may  have 
been,  in  part,  a  popular  one.  The  translation  of  a  metaphor 
into  reality  is  a  phenomenon  that  may  be  observed  in  almost  all 
religions  of  antiquity.  But  the  process,  whatever  its  course  in 
detail  may  have  been,  was  not  uninfluenced  by  the  theological 
dogma  whereby  a  god  was  supposed  to  have  a  '  reflection '  who 
was  pictured  as  his  consort.  Through  this  conception,  as  we 
have  already  seen,  many  a  goddess  once  ruling  in  her  own 
right,  and  enjoying  an  independent  existence,  degenerated  into 
a  mere  shadow  of  some  male  deity,  though,  on  the  other  hand, 
it  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  these  female  deities  would  have 
disappeared  altogether  but  for  the  opportunity  thus  afforded 
them  of  becoming  '  attache'es  '  to  some  male  deity.  This  theory 
of  the  $wtf.s7-artificial  character  and   origin   of  Tashmit  finds 


132  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION 

support  in  the  manner  in   which   the  mention  of  her  name  is 
entwined  with  that  of    Nabu.      Sarpanitum,   bound   up  as  the 
goddess  is  with   Marduk,  has  at  least  a  shrine  of  her  own,  and 
occasionally  she  is  spoken  of  in  the  texts  without  her  husband 
Marduk.1    The  mention  of  Tashmitum,  however,  invariably  fol- 
lows that  of  Nabu.    It  is  always  '  Nabu  and  Tashmitum,'  and  it 
is  never  Tashmitum  without  Nabu.    While  the  creation  of  Tash- 
mitum may  be  a  product  of  Babylonian  religious  thought,  it  is 
in  Assyrian  texts  that  her  name  is  chiefly  found.     The  great 
Ashurbanabal,   in    the   conventional  subscript  attached  to  his. 
tablet,  is  particularly  fond  of  coupling  Tashmitum  with  Nabu, 
as  the  two  deities  who  opened  his  ears  to  understanding  and 
prompted   him  to  gather  in    his   palace  the   literary  treasures 
produced  by  the  culture  that  flourished  in  the  south.     Tashmit 
has  no  shrine  or  temple,  so  far  as  known,  either  in  Borsippa  or 
in   any  of  the  places  whither  the  Nabu  cult  spread.      She  has 
no  attributes  other  than  those  that  belong  to  Nabu,  and,  what 
is  very  remarkable,  the  later  Babylonian  kings,  such  as  Nebu- 
chadnezzar II.,  when  they  deem  it  proper  to  attach  a  consort  to 
Nabu  call  her  Nana,2  i.e.,  simply  the  lady,  and  not  Tashmitum, 
a  proof,  how  little  hold  the  name  had  taken  upon  the  Babylonian 
populace.     If  to  this  it  be  added,  that  in  by  far  the  greater 
number  of  instances,  no  reference  whatsoever  to  a  consort  is 
made  when  Nabu  is  spoken  of,  an  additional  reason  is  found 
for  the  unreal,  the  shadowy  character  of  this  goddess. 

Ea. 

In  treating  of  the  position  occupied  by  Ea  in  the  oldest 
period  of  Babylonian  history  (see  above,  pp.  61-64),  it  has 
already  been  mentioned  that  he  grows  to  much  larger  propor- 
tions under  the  influence  of  a  more  fully  developed  theological 
system.      Indeed,   there   is  no   god   who  shows   such   profound 

1  So  in  the  cylinder  of  Shamash-shum-ukin  (Lehrnann's  publication,  pis.  viii.  seq). 
-  /•'.;'••  in  the  so-called  Grotefend  Cylinder,  col.  ii.  34. 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DA  YS  OF  HAMMURABI.     133 

traces   of  having  been   submitted  to  a   theological  treatment, 
and  indirectly,   therefore,  furnishes  so  distinct  a  proof  of  the 
existence  of  theological  schools  in  the  ancient  centers  of  Baby- 
lonian culture,   as   Ea.      The  question   may  with  propriety  be 
here  discussed,  to  what  period  we  are  to  attribute  the  comple- 
tion of  the  process,  which,  to  summarize  his  position,  made  Ea 
the  special  god  of  humanity,  the  father  of  Marduk,  the  third  in 
a  great  triad,  of  which  the  other  two  members  were  Anu,  the 
god  of  heaven,  and   Bel,   the   god  of  earth.     Already,  in  the 
days  preceding  the  union  of  the  Babylonian  states  under  one 
head,  we  have  had  occasion   to   see   traces   of  an  attempt  to 
systematize  the  relations  existing  between  the  gods.     A  high 
degree  of  culture,  such  as  the  existence  of  a  perfected  form  of 
writing,   an   advanced    form   of    architecture,   and    commercial 
enterprise  reflect,  cannot  be  dissociated  from  a  high  degree  of 
activity   in   the    domain  of    philosophic    or    religious   thought. 
Accordingly,  we  are  in   no  danger  of  attributing  too  great  an 
antiquity  to  the  beginnings  of  theological  speculation  in  Baby- 
lonia.    Be  it  remembered  that  from  the  earliest  to  the  latest 
days,  the  priests  were  the  scribes  and  that  in  their  capacity  as 
writers  of  the  texts,  they  would  be  enjoying  the  advantages  of 
an  intellectual  impulse.     But  they  were  also  the  composers  of 
the  texts,  as  well  as  the  writers,  and  the  prominence  given  to 
the  gods  in  texts  of  whatever  description,  would  inevitably  lead 
their  thoughts  to  speculations  regarding  the  attributes  of  the 
gods.     The  attempt  would  at  an  early  period  be  made  to  find 
some  unifying  principles  in  the  tangled  mass  of  gods.     By  the 
time  that    Hammurabi   appears  on   the  scene,   we  have  every 
reason   to   believe  that  some   of  the   ancient   libraries  of  the 
south,  whither  Ashurbanabal  sent  his  scribes,  were  already  well 
stocked,  and  that  a  goodly  portion  of  the  Babylonian  literature 
known  to  us  already  existed.    What  these  portions  were,  we  will 
have  occasion  to  point  out  when  we  come  to  discuss  the  litera- 
ture of  Babylonia.     On  the  other  hand,  this  literature  would 


134  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

not  only  necessarily  increase  as  long  as  any  degree  of  intellec- 
tual activity  existed  in  the  country,  but  this  activity  would  also 
manifest  itself  in  transforming  this  literature,  so  as  to  adapt  it 
to  the  thoughts  and  aspirations  of  a  later  age.  Especially 
would  this  be  the  case  in  the  purely  religious  divisions  of 
literature.  The  ancient  traditions,  legends,  and  myths,  once 
committed  to  writing,  would  serve  as  a  point  of  departure  for 
further  speculations.  The  existence  of  a  text  to  which  any 
measure  of  value  is  attached,  is  bound  to  give  rise  to  various 
attempts  at  interpretation,  and  if  this  value  be  connected  with 
the  religion  of  a  people,  the  result  is,  invariably,  that  the  ancient 
words  are  invested  with  a  meaning  conformable  to  a  later  age. 
Each  generation  among  a  people  characterized  by  intellectual 
activity  has  a  signature  of  its  own,  and  it  will  seek  to  give  to 
the  religious  thoughts  of  the  time  its  own  particular  impress. 
Since,  however,  the  material  upon  which  any  age  works  is  not 
of  its  own  making,  but  is  furnished  by  a  preceding  one,  it 
follows  that  much  of  the  intellectual  activity  of  an  age  manifests 
itself  in  a  transformation  of  its  literary  or  speculative  heritage. 
This  process  was  constantly  going  on  in  Babylonia,  and  had 
we  more  material  —  and  older  material  —  at  our  disposal,  we 
would  be  able  to  trace  more  clearly  than  we  can  at  present,  the 
various  stages  that  led  to  the  system  of  theology,  as  embodied 
in  the  best  productions  of  the  ancient  Babylonian  schoolmen. 

The  days  of  Hammurabi,  as  they  were  politically  of  great 
importance,  also  appear  to  have  ushered  in  a  new  era  in  the 
religious  life  of  the  people.  Stirring  political  events  are  always 
apt  to  bring  in  their  wake  intellectual  movements,  and  in  a 
country  like  Babylonia,  where  politics  react  so  forcibly  on  relig- 
ious conditions,  the  permanent  establishment  of  the  supremacy 
of  the  city  of  Babylon  would  be  fraught  with  important  conse- 
quences for  the  cult.  The  main  change  brought  about  by  this 
new  epoch  of  Babylonian  history  was.  as  we  have  seen,  the 
superior  position   henceforth  accorded  in  the  pantheon  to  Mar- 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DAYS  OE  HAMMURABI.     135 

duk  as  the  patron  deity  of  Babylon  ;  but  this  change  entailed 
so  many  others,  that  it  almost  merits  being  termed  a  revolution. 
In  order  to  ensure  Marduk's  place,  the  relations  of  the  other 
deities  to  him  had  to  be  regulated,  the  legends  and  traditions 
of  the  past  reshaped,  so  as  to  be  brought  into  consistent  accord 
with  the  new  order  of  things,  and  the  cult  likewise  to  be,  at 
least  in  part,  remodelled,  so  as  to  emphasize  the  supremacy  of 
Marduk.  This  work,  which  was  an  inevitable  one,  was  pri- 
marily of  an  intellectual  order.  We  are  justified,  then,  in 
looking  for  traces  of  this  activity  in  the  remains  that  have 
been  recovered  of  ancient  Babylonian  literature.  We  know 
from  direct  evidence  that  the  commercial  life  of  Babylonia  had 
already,  in  the  period  preceding  Hammurabi,  led  to  regulated 
legal  forms  and  practices  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  out 
obligations  and  of  settling  commercial  and  legal  difficulties. 
The  proof  has  been  furnished  by  Dr.  Meissner  '  that  sylla- 
baries prepared  for  the  better  understanding  of  the  formulas 
and  words  employed  in  preparing  the  legal  and  commercial 
tablets,  date,  in  part,  from  the  period  which  we  may  roughly 
designate  as  that  of  Hammurabi,  —  covering,  say,  the  three 
centuries  2300  to  2000  b.c.  With  this  evidence  for  the  exist- 
ence of  pedagogues  devoted  to  the  training  of  novices  in  the  art 
of  reading  and  writing,  in  order  to  fit  them  for  their  future  tasks 
as  official  scribes,  we  are  safe  in  assuming  that  these  same 
schoolmen  were  no  less  active  in  other  fields  of  literature.  If, 
in  addition  to  this,  we  find  that  much  of  the  religious  literature, 
in  the  shape  that  we  have  it,  reflects  the  religious  conditions 
such  as  they  must  have  shaped  themselves  in  consequence  of 
the  promotion  of  Marduk  to  the  head  of  the  pantheon,  the 
conclusion  is  forced  upon  us  that  such  literary  productions 
date  from  this  same  epoch  of  Hammurabi.  This  influence  of 
the  schoolmen  while  centering,  as  repeatedly  pointed  out, 
around  the  position  of  Marduk,  manifests  itself  in  a  pro- 
1  Wiener  Zeitschrift  fur  die  Knndc  d.  Morgenlandes,  iv.  301-307. 


136  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

nounced  fashion,  also,  in  the  changed  position  henceforth 
accorded  to  the  god  Ea.  It  will  be  recalled  that  in  the  earliest 
period  of  Babylonian  history,  Ea  does  not  figure  prominently. 
At  the  same  time  we  must  beware  of  laying  too  much  stress 
upon  the  negative  testimony  of  the  historical  texts.  Besides 
the  still  limited  material  of  this  character  at  our  disposal,  the 
non-mention  of  a  deity  may  be  due  to  a  variety  of  circum- 
stances, that  may  properly  be  designated  as  accidental.  The 
gods  to  whom  the  kings  of  the  ancient  Babylonian  states  would 
be  apt  to  appeal  would  be,  in  the  first  instance,  the  local 
deities,  patrons  of  the  city  that  happened  to  be  the  capital  of 
the  state  ;  in  the  second  instance,  the  gods  of  the  vanquished 
towns ;  and  thirdly,  some  of  the  great  deities  worshipped  at 
the  sacred  centers  of  the  Euphrates  valley,  and  who  consti- 
tuted, as  it  were,  the  common  heritage  of  the  past.  Ea,  as  the 
god  of  the  Persian  gulf,  the  region  which  forms  the  starting- 
point  of  Babylonian  culture,  and  around  which  some  of  the 
oldest  and  most  precious  recollections  center,  would  come 
within  the  radius  of  the  third  instance,  since,  in  the  period  we 
have  in  mind,  Eridu  no  longer  enjoyed  any  political  importance. 
We  may  be  sure,  then,  despite  the  silence  of  the  texts,  that  Ea 
was  always  held  in  great  esteem,  and  that  even  the  absence  of 
temples  in  his  honor,  did  not  affect  the  reverence  and  awe  that 
he  inspired.  As  for  the  epoch  of  Hammurabi,  the  historical 
spirit  that  is  never  absent  in  a  truly  intellectual  age  would  be 
certain  to  restore  Ea  to  his  proper  prestige,  assuming  that  a 
previous  age  had  permitted  him  to  fall  into  neglect.  Next  to 
Marduk,  there  is  no  deity  who  is  given  such  distinction  in 
babylonia,  after  the  union  of  the  Babylonian  states,  as  Ea.  In 
the  religious  literature,  moreover,  as  reshaped  by  the  school- 
men of  the  time,  his  role  is  even  more  prominent  than  that  of 
Marduk.  As  a  water-god,  and  more  particularly  as  the  god  to 
whom  the  largest  body  of  water  known  to  the  Babylonians  was 
sacred,  Ea  was  regarded  as  the  source  and  giver  of  wisdom. 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DA  YS  OE  HAMMURABI.     137 

Fountains  everywhere  were  sacred  to  him ;  and  so  he  becomes 
also  the  giver  of  fertility  and  plenty.  Berosus  tells  us  of  a 
mystic  being,  half  man,  half  fish,  who  spent  his  nights  in  the 
waters  of  the  gulf,  but  who  would  come  out  of  the  waters 
during  the  day  to  give  instruction  to  the  people,  until  that  time 
steeped  in  ignorance  and  barbarism.  This  '  Oannes,'  as  Bero- 
sus is  said  l  to  have  called  him,  was  none  other  than  Ea.  As 
the  great  benefactor  of  mankind,  it  is  natural  that  Ea  should 
have  come  to  be  viewed  as  the  god  whose  special  function  it  is 
to  protect  the  human  race,  to  advance  it  in  all  its  good  under- 
takings, to  protect  it  against  the  evil  designs  of  gods  or  demons. 
In  this  role,  he  appears  in  the  religious  literature  —  in  the 
epics,  the  cosmogony,  and  the  ritual  —  of  Babylonia.  There 
is  no  god  conceived  in  so  universal  a  manner  as  Ea.  All  local 
connection  with  Eridu  disappears.  He  belongs  to  no  particu- 
lar district.  His  worship  is  not  limited  to  any  particular  spot. 
All  of  Babylonia  lays  claim  to  him.  The  ethical  import  of 
such  a  conception  is  manifestly  great,  and  traces  of  it  are  to 
be  found  in  the  religious  productions.  It  impressed  upon  the 
Babylonians  the  common  bond  uniting  all  mankind.  The  cult 
of  Ea  must  have  engendered  humane  feelings,  softening  the 
rivalry  existing  among  the  ancient  centers  of  Babylonian  power, 
and  leading  the  people  a  considerable  distance,  on  the  road  to 
the  conception  of  a  common  humanity.  When  the  gods  decide 
to  destroy  mankind,  it  is  Ea  who  intercedes  on  behalf  of  human- 
ity ;  when  the  demon  of  disease  has  entered  a  human  body,  it 
is  to  Ea  that,  in  the  last  resort,  the  appeal  is  made  to  free  the 
sufferer  from  his  pain.  Ea  is  the  god  of  the  physicians.  Nay, 
more,  it  is  Ea  who  presided  at  the  birth  of  humanity,  so  that 

1  We  only  know  the  name  through  Eusebius'  extract  from  Alexander  Polyhistor's 
digest  of  Berosus.  The  form,  therefore,  cannot  be  vouched  for.  The  various  mod- 
ern attempts  to  explain  the  name  have  failed  (see  e.g.,  Lenormant's  Magie  und 
Wahrsagekunst  der  Chaldaer,  2d  German  edition,  pp.  376-379).  There  may  be 
some  ultimate  connection  between  Oannes  and  Jonah  (see  Trumbull  in  Journal  of 
Bibl.  Liter,  xi.  58,  note). 


13S  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

his  protection  reaches  far  back,  beyond  even  the  beginnings  of 
civilization,  almost  to  the  beginning  of  things.     Lastly,  as  the 
god  of  civilization,  it  is  to  him  that  the  great  works  of  art  are 
ascribed.      He  is  the  god  of  the  smithy,  the  patron  of  the  gold- 
and  silversmiths,  of    workers  in  lapis-lazuli,   and  all  kinds  of 
precious  stones.     He  is  the  god  of  sculpture.     The  great  bulls 
and  lions  that  guarded  the  approaches  to  the  temple  and  palace 
chambers,  as  well  as  the  statues  of  the  gods  and  kings,  were 
the    work    of   his   hands.      Furthermore,  he    is   the   patron    of 
weavers,  as  of  other  arts.     This  conception   may  have   been 
perfected  in  a  general  way,  and  in  all  probability  was  perfected 
before    the  days  of    Hammurabi,   though    perhaps    not    prom- 
inently brought    forward;     but    important    modifications   were 
introduced  into  it,  through    the  compromise  that   had    to    be 
arranged   between    the  position  of    Ea  and   that  of    Marduk. 
Of  course,  neither  the  rulers  nor  the  priests  of  Babylon  could 
have   permitted    the   reverence   for    Ea    to   have   gone   to   the 
length   of    throwing   Marduk    into   the   shade.       Many   of    the 
functions  assigned  to  Ea  seemed  to  belong  of  right  to  Marduk, 
who,  as  the  patron  of  Babylon,  presided  over  the  destinies  of 
what  to  the  Babylonians  was  the  essential  part  of  mankind, - 
namely,   themselves.     Moreover,    Babylon   being    the    seat    of 
culture    as   well    as    of    power,    to    the   period   following   upon 
Hammurabi,  Marduk   was  necessarily  conceived  as  possessing 
the  same  wisdom  that  distinguishes   Ea.      As  a   consequence, 
the  attributes  of   Ea  were  transferred  in    a  body   to   Marduk. 
An   amalgamation   of  the  two,  however,  such   as  took  place  in 
the   case   of   other  deities,   was   neither  possible,   nor,   indeed, 
desirable.     It  was  not  possible,  because  of  the  antiquity  of  the 
Ea  cult  and  the  peculiar   position   that  he,  as  a  common  heir- 
loom of  all   Babylonia,  occupied;   nor  was  it  desirable,  for  to 
do  so  would  be  to  cut  off  completely  the  bond  uniting  Babylon 
to  its  own  past  and   to  the  rest  of   Babylonia.     The  solution  of 
the  problem  was  found  in  making  Ea,  the  father  of  Marduk  — 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DA  YS  OF  HAMMURABI.     139 

the  loving  and  proud  father  who  willingly  transfers  all  his 
powers  and  qualities  to  his  son,  who  rejoices  in  the  triumph  of 
his  offspring,  and  who  suffers  no  pangs  of  jealousy  when 
beholding  the  superior  honors  shown  to  Marduk,  both  by  the 
gods  and  by  men. 

Ea  and  Marduk. 

The  combination  of  the  two  gods  is  particularly  frequent  in 
the  so-called  incantation  texts.  Marduk  becomes  the  mediator 
between  Ea  and  mankind.  The  man  smitten  with  disease,  or 
otherwise  in  trouble,  appeals  to  Marduk  for  help,  who  promptly 
brings  the  petition  to  his  father  Ea.  The  latter,  after  modestly 
declaring  that  there  is  nothing  that  he  knows  which  his  son 
Marduk  does  not  know,  gives  Marduk  the  necessary  instruc- 
tions, which  in  turn  are  conveyed  to  the  one  crying  for  divine 
succor.  It  is  clear  that  these  texts  have  been  reshaped  with 
the  intention  of  adding  to  the  glory  of  Marduk.  They  must, 
therefore,  have  been  remodelled  at  a  time  when  the  Marduk 
cult  was  in  the  ascendancy.  This  was  after  the  days  of 
Hammurabi,  and  before  the  subjugation  of  Babylonia  to 
Assyrian  rule.  The  limits  thus  assigned  are,  to  be  sure, 
broad,  but  from  what  has  above  been  said  as  to  the  intellectual 
activity  reigning  in  the  days  of  Hammurabi,  we  need  not 
descend  far  below  the  death  of  the  great  conqueror  to  find  the 
starting-point  for  the  remodelling  of  the  texts  in  question. 
Not  all  of  them,  of  course,  were  so  reshaped.  There  are  quite 
a  number  in  which  Ea  is  alone  and  directly  appealed  to,  and 
these  form  a  welcome  confirmation  of  the  supposition  that 
those  in  which  Ea  is  joined  to  Marduk  have  been  reshaped 
with  a  desire  to  make  them  conform  to  the  position  of  Marduk 
in  the  Babylonian  pantheon.  Again,  there  are  incantations  in 
which  the  name  of  Marduk  appears  without  Ea.  Such  are 
either  productions  of  a  later  period,  of  the  time  when  Marduk 
had   already   assumed   his   superior   position,   or   what   is   also 


140  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAX  RELIGION. 

possible,  though  less  probable,  old  compositions  in  which  the 
name  of  Ea  has  been  simply  replaced  by  that  of  Marduk.  An 
especially  interesting  example  of  the  manner  in  which  ancient 
productions  have  been  worked  over  by  the  Babylonian  theolo- 
gians, with  a  view  to  bringing  their  favorite  Marduk  into 
greater  prominence,  appears  in  one  of  the  episodes  of  the 
Babylonian  cosmogony.  Prior  to  the  creation  of  man  a  great 
monster  known  as  Tiamat  had  to  be  subdued.  The  gods  all 
shrink  in  terror  before  her.  Only  one  succeeds  in  conquering 
her.  In  the  form  of  the  story,  as  we  have  it,  this  hero  is 
Marduk,  but  it  is  quite  evident1  that  the  honor  originally 
belonged  to  an  entirely  different  god,  one  who  is  much  older, 
and  who  stands  much  higher  than  the  god  of  Babylon.  This 
was  Bel,  —  the  old  god  of  Nippur  who  was  conceived  as  the 
god  of  earth  par  excellence,  and  to  whom  therefore  the  task  of 
preparing  the  earth  for  the  habitation  of  mankind  properly 
belonged.  How  do  the  Babylonian  theologians,  who  stand 
under  the  influence  of  the  political  conditions  prevailing  in 
Babylonia  after  the  union  of  the  Babylonian  states,  reconcile 
this  older  and  true  form  of  the  episode  with  the  form  in  which 
they  have  recast  it?  The  gods  who  are  called  the  progenitors 
of  Marduk  are  represented  as  rejoicing  upon  seeing  Marduk 
equipped  for  the  fray.  In  chorus  they  greet  and  bless  him, 
"  Marduk  be  king."  They  present  him  with  additional  weap- 
ons, and  encourage  him  for  the  contest.  Upon  hearing  of  his 
success  the  gods  vie  with  one  another  in  conferring  honors 
upon  Marduk.  They  bestow  all  manner  of  glorious  epithets 
upon  him;  and.  to  cap  the  climax,  the  old  Bel,  known  as  'father 
Bel,'  steps  forward  and  transfers  to  him  his  name.  Ml  matati? 
'lord  of  lands.'  To  bestow  the  name  was  equivalent  to  trans- 
ferring Bel's   powers  to  Marduk;   and  so  Marduk  is  henceforth 

1  For  Fuller  proof,  see  the  chapter  on  "  The  Cosmology  ol  the  Babylonians." 

2  This,  it  will  be  remembered  (see  above,  p.  u8),  is  one  of   the  titles  of    Mai 

(Ink  in  one  of  Hammurabi's  inscriptions,  —  an  important  point  lor  the  date  of  the 
episode  in  its  pre  ieni  form. 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DA  YS  OF  HAMMURABI.     141 

known  as  Bel.  But  Ea  must  be  introduced  into  the  episode.  It 
is  not  sufficient  that  Bel,  the  original  subduer  of  Tiamat,  should 
pay  homage  to  Marduk ;  Ea  also  greets  his  son,  and  bestows 
his  name  upon  him,1  —  that  is,  transfers  his  powers  to  his  son. 
There  is  a  special  reason  for  this.  The  overthrow  of  Tiamat 
is  followed  by  the  creation  of  man.  This  function  properly 
belongs  to  Bel,  both  as  the  god  of  earth  and  as  the  subduer  of 
Tiamat.  According  to  one  —  and  probably  the  oldest — version 
of  this  part  of  the  Babylonian  cosmogony  which  was  embodied 
in  the  work  of  Berosus,2  it  is  Bel  who  creates  mankind.  The 
substitution  of  Marduk  for  Bel  necessitated  the  transference  of 
the  role  of  creator  to  Marduk  likewise,  and  yet  the  latter  could 
not  take  this  upon  himself  without  the  consent  of  his  father 
Ea,  who  had  become  the  god  of  humanity  par  excellence.  Ea 
could  interpose  no  objection  against  Bel  being  replaced  by 
Marduk  in  vanquishing  the  monster,  but  when  it  came  to  draw- 
ing the  conclusion  and  replacing  Bel  by  Marduk  also  in  the 
creation  of  man,  the  case  was  different.  If  Bel  was  to  be 
replaced,  Ea  had  a  prior  claim.  Marduk  could  only  take 
the  new  functions  upon  himself  after  receiving  the  powers  of 
Ea.  That  is  the  force  of  Ea's  saying  that  Marduk's  name  also 
shall  be  Ea  just  as  his.  This  transference  of  the  name  of  Ea 
to  Marduk  is  in  itself  an  indication  that  there  must  have 
existed  a  second  version  in  Babylonia  —  probably  of  later 
origin  than  the  other — of  the  creation  of  man,  according 
to  which  Ea,  and  not  Bel,  was  the  creator.  We  shall 
have  occasion  to  see,  in  a  future  chapter,  that  there  were 
at  least  two  different  versions  current  in  Babylonia  of  the 
creation  of  the  gods  and  of  the  universe.  The  open- 
ing chapters  in  Genesis  form  an  interesting  parallel  to 
show  the  manner  in  which  two  different  versions  of  one  and 
the    same    subject    may   be    combined.      There    is,    therefore, 

1  Literally, '  Ea  shall  be  his  name,  his  as  mine.' 

2  According  to  Syncellus.     In  cuneiform  texts  the  old  Bel  is  at  times  invoked  as 
the  creator  of  mankind. 


142  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

nothing  improbable  in  the  supposition  that  a  later  version, 
reflecting  a  period  when  Bel  had  sunk  into  comparative  insig- 
nificance, made  Ea  the  creator  of  mankind  instead  of  Bel,  and 
that  still  later  a  solution  of  the  apparent  inconsistency  involved 
in  transferring  only  part  of  Bel's  powers  to  Mard.uk  was  found 
by  securing  Ea's  consent  to  the  acknowledgment  of  Marduk 
not  merely  as  creator  of  mankind  but  of  the  heavenly  vault  as 
well.  Jensen  x  has  brought  other  evidence  to  show  that  Ea  was 
once  regarded  as  the  creator  of  mankind.  One  of  his  titles 
is  that  of  'potter,'  and  mankind,  according  to  Babylonian 
theories,  was  formed  of  'clay.'  Moreover,  in  a  Babylonian 
myth  that  will  be  set  forth  in  its  proper  place,  Ea  expressly 
figures  in  the  role  of  creating  a  mysterious  being,  Uddushu-na- 
niir,  whose  name  signifies  '  his  light  shines.'  Such  a  proper 
name,  too,  as  "  Ea-bani,"  i.e.,  '  Ea  creates,'  points  in  the  same 
direction. 

In  other  literary  productions  of  Babylonia,  such  as,  e.g., 
the  so-called  Izdubar  epic,  Ea  again  appears  without  Marduk, 
showing  that  this  story  has  not  been  remodeled,  or  that  the 
later  version,  in  which  the  traces  of  a  recasting  may  have  been 
seen,  has  not  been  discovered.  In  the  deluge  story,  which 
forms  part  of  the  Izdubar  epic,  Ea  alone  is  the  hero.  It  is  he 
who  saves  humanity  from  complete  annihilation,  and  who  paci- 
fies the  angered  Bel.  Marduk's  name  does  not  appear  in  the 
entire  epic.  We  have  found  it  necessary  to  dwell  thus  at 
length  upon  these  evidences  of  the  recasting  of  the  literary 
products  of  ancient  Babylonia  under  the  influence  of  changed 
conceptions  of  the  gods  and  of  their  relations  to  one  another, 
for  upon  the  understanding  of  these  changes,  our  appreciation 
of  the  development  of  religious  beliefs  in  Babylonia,  and  all 
connected  with  these  beliefs,  hinges.  The  epoch  of  Hammu- 
rabi was  a  crucial  one  for  Babylonia  from  a  religious  as  well 
as  from  a  political  point  of  view. 

1  Kosmologie,  pp.  293,  294. 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DAYS  OE  HAMMURABI.     143 

Damkina. 

The  consort  of  Ea  figures  occasionally  in  the  historical  texts 
of  Hammurabi's  successors.  Agumkakrimi  invokes  Ea  and 
Damkina,  asking  these  gods,  who  'dwell  in  the  great  ocean' 
surrounding  the  earth,  to  grant  him  long  life.  In  addition  to 
this,  the  antiquity  of  the  literary  productions  in  which  her 
name  appears  justifies  us  in  reckoning  her  among  the  gods  of 
Babylonia  of  Hammurabi's  time.  Her  name  signifies  '  lady 
of  the  earth,'  and  there  is  evidently  a  theoretical  substratum 
to  this  association  of  Ea,  the  water-god,  with  an  earth-goddess. 
The  one  forms  the  complement  to  the  other ;  and  Marduk,  as 
the  son  of  water  and  earth,  takes  his  place  in  the  theory  as  the 
creator  of  the  world.  In  this  form  the  '  natural  philosophy  '  of 
Babylonia  survived  to  a  late  period.  Nicolas  of  Damascus 
still  knows  (probably  through  Berosus)  that  Ea  and  Damkina1 
had  a  son  Bel  (i.e.,  Marduk).  The  survival  of  the  name  is  a 
proof  that,  despite  the  silence  of  the  historical  texts,  she  was 
a  prominent  personage  in  Babylonian  mythology,  even  though 
she  did  not  figure  largely  in  the  cult.  She  appears  in  the 
magical  texts  quite  frequently  at  the  side  of  Ea.  In  a  hymn 2 
where  a  description  occurs  of  the  boat  containing  Ea,  Damkina 
his  wife,  and  Marduk  their  son,  together  with  the  ferryman 
and  some  other  personages  sailing  across  the  ocean,  we  may 
see  traces  of  the  process  of  symbolization  to  which  the  old 
figures  of  mythology  were  subjected. 

Shamash. 

Passing  on,  we  find  Hammurabi  as  strongly  attached  to  the 
worship  of  the  old  sun-god  as  any  of  his  predecessors.  Next 
to  Babylon,  he  was  much  concerned  with  making  improve- 
ments in   Sippar.     The  Temple  of  Shamash  at  Larsa  also  was 

l  Aos  and  Dauke.  2  Rawlinson,  iv.  25. 


144  /■'.  /  /' )  'LONIAN-.  iSS )  'RIAN  REL IGION. 

improved  and  enlarged  by  him.  Hammurabi's  example  is  fol- 
lowed by  his  successors.  Agumkakrimi  invokes  Shamash  as 
'  warrior  of  heaven  and  earth';  and  it  is  likely  that  the  prece- 
dent furnished  by  these  two  kings,  who  considered  it  consistent 
with  devotion  to  Marduk  to  single  out  the  places  sacred  to 
Shamash  for  special  consideration,  had  much  to  do  in  main- 
taining the  popularity  of  sun-worship  in  Babylonia  and  Assyria. 
Kara-indash,  of  the  Cassite  dynasty  (Y.  1450  B.C.),  restores  the 
temple  of  Shamash  at  Larsa,  and  Mili-shikhu,  two  centuries  later, 
assigns  to  Shamash  the  second  place  in  his  pantheon,  naming 
him  before  Marduk.  Foreign  rulers  were  naturally  not  so  deeply 
attached  to  Marduk  as  were  the  natives  of  Babylon.  In  the 
Assyrian  pantheon  Shamash  occupies  the  third  place,  following 
immediately  upon  the  two  special  deities  of  Assyria.  One  of  the 
greatest  of  the  northern  kings  erects  a  temple  in  honor  of  the 
god,  and  the  later  Babylonian  kings  vie  with  one  another  in 
doing  honor  to  the  two  oldest  sanctuaries  of  Shamash,  at 
Sippar  and  Larsa.  Perhaps  the  pristine  affinity  between  Mar- 
duk, who,  as  we  saw,  was  originally  a  sun-deity,  and  Shamash, 
also  had  a  share  in  Hammurabi's  fondness  for  coupling  these 
two  gods.  When  describing  his  operations  at  Sippar  he  speaks 
of  himself  as  '  doing  good  to  the  flesh  of  Shamash  and  Marduk.' 
Hammurabi  felt  himself  to  be  honoring  Marduk,  through  paying 
homage  to  a  deity  having  affinity  with  the  patron  protector  of 
Babylon. 

NlNNl,    OR    TNNANNA. 

We  have  already  come  across  a  deity  of  this  name  in  a 
previous  chapter.1  Hammurabi  tells  us,  in  one  of  Ins  inscrip- 
tions, that  he  has  restored  the  temple  in  honor  of  Innanna  at 
Hallabi —  a  town  near  Sippar.'      Innanna,  or    Xinni.  signifying 

1  See  i>.  ;■  1. 

2  See  Jensen,  Keils  Bibl.  ;„  1.  p.  108,  note  5.  Tiele,  Gesck.  p.  121..  apparently 
identifies  innanna  of  Hallabi  with  Tashmit.  but,  so  far  as  1  can  see,  without  sufficient 
reason. 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DAYS  OF  HAMMURABI.     145 

merely  'lady,'  or  'great  lady,'  appears  to  have  become  a  very 
general  name  for  a  goddess,  hence  the  addition  'of  Hallabi,' 
which  Hammurabi  is  careful  to  make.  At  the  same  time  the 
designation  '  lady  of  Hallabi '  points  to  her  being  a  consort  of 
a  male  deity  who  was  the  patron  of  the  place.  May  this  have 
been  the  moon-god  again,  as  in  the  case  of  the  other  Innanna  ? 
Our  knowledge  of  this  goddess  is  confined  to  what  the  king 
tells  us  about  her.  For  him  she  is  the  mistress  whose  glory 
fills  heaven  and  earth,  but  when  he  adds  that  she  has  placed  in 
his  hands  the  reins  of  government,  this  only  means  that  the 
goddess  recognizes  his  right  to  supreme  authority  over  the 
Babylonian  states  —  not  that  he  owes  his  power  to  her.  It  is 
after  he  has  succeeded  in  making  Babylon  the  capital  of  a  great 
kingdom  that  he  proceeds  to  improve  the  temple  of   Innanna. 

Bel  and  the  Triad  of  Babylonian  Theology. 

Among  the  literary  remains  of  Hammurabi's  days  we  have  a 
hymn  in  which  the  chief  gods  worshipped  by  the  king  are 
enumerated  in  succession.  The  list  begins  with  Bel,  and  then 
mentions  Sin,  Ninib,  Ishtar,  Shamash,  and  Ramman.  We 
should  expect  to  find  at  the  head  of  the  list  Marduk.  The 
hymn  may  be  older  than  Hammurabi,  who,  perhaps,  is  quoting 
or  copying  it;  and  since  the  Bel  who  is  here  at  the  head  of  the 
pantheon  is  the  god  of  Nippur,  the  hymn  may  originally  have 
belonged  to  the  ritual  of  that  place.  For  Hammurabi  the 
highest  '  Bel,'  or  lord,  is  Marduk,  and  there  is  hardly  room  for 
doubt  that  in  using  this  hymn  as  a  means  of  passing  on  to  sing- 
ing his  own  praises,  with  which  the  inscription  in  question  ends, 
Hammurabi  has  in  mind  the  patron  god  of  Babylon  when 
speaking  of  Bel.1  It  is  this  amalgamation  of  the  old  Bel  with 
Marduk  that  marks,  as  we  have  seen,  the  transition  to  the  use 
of  Bel's  name  as  a  mere  title  of  Marduk.     Elsewhere,  however, 

1  Here  written  En-lil,  as  the  Befof  Nippur. 


146  BABYLONIAN-ASSl  R1AN   RELIGION. 

Hammurabi  uses  Bel  to  designate  the  old  god.  So  when  he 
calls  himself  the  proclaimer  of  Anu  and  Bel1  the  association 
with  Anu  makes  it  impossible  that  Marduk  should  be  meant. 
At  times  he  appears  to  refer  in  the  same  inscription,  now  to 
the  old  Bel  and  again  to  Bel-Marduk,  under  the  same  designa- 
tion. When  Kurigalzu,  a  member  of  the  Cassite  dynasty 
(c.  1400  B.C.),  speaks  of  'Bel,  the  lord  of  lands,'  to  whom  he 
erects  a  temple  in  the  new  city,  Dur-Kurigalzu  —  some  forty 
miles  to  the  northeast  of  Babylon  —  it  is  the  old  Bel  who  is  again 
meant.  While  acknowledging  Marduk  as  one  of  the  chief  gods, 
these  foreign  rulers  in  Babylonia  —  the  Cassites  —  did  not  feel 
the  same  attachment  to  him  as  Hammurabi  did.  They  gave  the 
preference  to  the  old  god  of  Nippur,  and,  indeed,  succeeded  in 
their  attempt  to  give  to  the  old  city  of  Nippur  some  of  its  pristine 
glory.  They  devoted  themselves  assiduously  to  the  care  of  the 
great  temple  at  Nippur.  There  are  some  indications  of  an 
attempt  made  by  them  to  make  Nippur  the  capital  of  their 
empire.  In  the  case  of  Hammurabi's  immediate  successor,  as 
has  been  pointed  out,  the  equation  Bel-Marduk  is  distinctly  set 
down,  but,  for  all  that,  the  double  employment  of  the  name  con- 
tinues even  through  the  period  of  the  Assyrian  supremacy  over 
Babylonia.  The  northern  rulers  now  use  Bel  to  designate  the 
more  ancient  "god,  and,  again,  merely  as  a  designation  of  Mar- 
duk. Tiglathpileser  I.  (see  note  2,  below)  expressly  adds  '  the 
older'  when  speaking  of  Bel.  When  Sargon  refers  to  Bel,  'the 
lord  of  lands,  who  dwells  on  the  sacred  mountain  of  the  gods,' 
or  when  Tiglathpileser  1.  calls  Bel  'the  father  of  the  gods,' 
'  the  king  of  the  group  of  spirits  '  known  as  the  Anunaki,  it  is 

l  Attached  to  the  name  here  (Ravvlinson,  i.  4,  no.  xv-o),  which  is  written  ideo- 
graphically  En-Lil,  is  the  designation  da-gan-ni,  which  has  occasioned  considerable 
discussion.  See  Jensen,  Kosmologiei  pp.  449-456.  It  seems  to  me  that  the  addition 
which  emphasizes  this  identity  ol  Bel  with  another  god,  Dagan,  is  t.>  indicate  that 
ilf  Bel  of  the  triad,  and  not  Bel-Marduk,  is  here  meant.  Somewhat  in  the  same  way 
I  iglathpilesei  1.  (Rawlinson,  i.  14,  viii.  cS;)  distinguishes  the  older  Bel  by  calling  him 
'Bel  1  ilma.'  i.e..  '  Bel  the  older.' 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DA  YS  OF  HAMMURABI.     147 

of  course  only  the  old  Bel,  the  lord  of  the  lower  region,  or  of  the 
earth,  who  can  be  meant ;  but  when,  as  is  much  more  frequently 
the  case,  the  kings  of  Assyria,  down  to  the  fall  of  the  empire, 
associate  Bel  with  Nabu,  speak  of  Bel  and  the  gods  of  Akkad 
(i.e.,  Babylonia),  and  use  Bel,  moreover,  to  designate  Baby- 
lonia,1 it  is  equally  clear  that  Marduk  is  meant.  In  the  Neo- 
Babylonian  empire  Marduk  alone  is  used. 

The  continued  existence  of  a  god  Bel  in  the  Babylonian 
pantheon,  despite  the  amalgamation  of  Bel  with  Marduk,  is  a 
phenomenon  that  calls  for  some  comment.  The  explanation 
is  to  be  found  in  the  influence  of  the  theological  system  that 
must  have  been  developed  in  part,  at  least,  even  before  the 
union  of  the  Babylonian  states.2  Bel,  as  the  god  of  earth,  was 
associated  with  Anu,  as  the  god  of  heaven,  and  Ea,  as  the  god 
of  the  deep,  to  form  a  triad  that  embraced  the  entire  universe. 
When,  therefore,  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea  were  invoked,  it  was  equiva- 
lent to  naming  all  the  powers  that  influenced  the  fate  of  man. 
They  embraced,  as  it  were,  the  three  kingdoms  of  the  gods, 
within  which  all  the  other  gods  could  be  comprised.  The  sys- 
tematization  involved  in  the  assumption  of  a  triad  of  gods 
controlling  the  entire  pantheon  can  hardly  be  supposed  to  have 
been  a  popular  process.  It  betokens  an  amount  of  thought 
and  speculation,  a  comprehensive  view  of  the  powers  of  nature, 
that  could  only  have  arisen  in  minds  superior  to  the  average 
intelligence.  In  other  words,  the  conception  of  the  triad  Anu, 
Bel,  and  Ea  is  again  an  evidence  of  the  existence  of  school- 
men and  of  schools  of  religious  thought  in  the  days  of  the 
ancient  empire.  So  far,  however,  as  Hammurabi  is  concerned, 
he  only  refers  to  a  duality  —  Anu  and  Bel  —  which,  for  him,  com- 
prises all  the  other  gods.  He  is  the  'proclaimer  of  Anu  and  Bel.' 
It  is  Anu  and  Bel  who  give  him  sovereignty  over  the  land.      In 

1  '  Governor  of  Bel '  for  governor  of  Babylonia,  and  '  subjects  of  Bel '  for  subjects 
of  Babylonia. 

2  See  p.  89  and  chapter  vii. 


148  BAB YLOAi 'A N- ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

the  texts  of  the  second  period  the  triad  does  not  occur  until  we 
come  to  the  reign  of  a  king,  Mili-shikhu,  who  lives  at  least  eight 
centuries  after  Hammurabi.  Ea,  in  fact,  does  not  occur  at  all 
in  those  inscriptions  of  the  king  that  have  as  yet  been  discov- 
ered. If  any  conclusion  is  to  be  drawn  from  this  omission,  it 
is  certainly  this,  —  that  there  are  several  stages  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  ancient  theological  system  of  babylonia.  At  fust 
a  duality  of  kingdoms  —  the  kingdom  of  what  is  above  and  be- 
low—  was  conceived  as  comprising  all  the  personified  powers 
of  nature,  but  this  duality  was  replaced  by  a  triad  through 
the  addition  of  the  god  who  stands  at  the  head  of  all  water- 
deities.  Of  course  the  assumption  of  a  'duality  instead  of  a 
triad  may  have  been  clue  to  a  difference  among  existing  schools 
of  thought.  At  all  events,  there  seems  to  be  no  political  rea- 
son for  the  addition  of  Ea,  and  it  is  difficult  to  say,  therefore, 
how  soon  the  conception  of  a  triad  standing  at  the  head  of  the 
pantheon  arose.  We  have  found  it  in  Gudea's  days,  and  it 
must,  therefore,  have  existed  in  the  days  of  Hammurabi,  with- 
out, perhaps,  being  regarded  as  an  essential  dogma  as  yet.  A 
direct  and  natural  consequence  of  Bel's  position  in  the  triad 
was  that,  by  the  side  of  Bel-Marduk,  the  older  Bel  continued  to 
be  invoked  in  historical  inscriptions.  Since  Ann  and  Ea 
were  appealed  to  by  themselves,  the  former  occasionally,  the 
latter  more  frequently,  there  was  no  reason  why  a  ruler  should 
not  at  times  be  prompted  to  introduce  an  invocation  to  Bel, 
without  the  direct  association  with  Anu  and  Ea.  The  con- 
fusion that  thus  ensues  between  the  two  Bels  was  not  of  serious 
moment,  since  from  the  context  one  could  without  difficulty 
determine  which  of  the  two  was  meant;  and  what  we.  with  our 
limited  knowledge  of  ancient  Babylonia,  are  able  to  do,  must 
have  been  an  easy  task  for  the  Babylonians  themselves.1 

1  Occasionally  a  king  (so  e.g.  Nabubaliddin,  c.  SS3  B.C.)  associates  Anu  with  Ea, 
and  omits  Bel  (Kawlinson,  v.  00,  ii.  21),  as  though  with  the  intent  of  avoiding 
confusion. 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DAYS  OF  HAMMURABI.     149 

It  is  tempting  to  suppose  that  the  first  command  of  the 
Decalogue  (Exodus,  xx)  contains  an  implied  reference  to  the 
Babylonian  triad. 

Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea. 

The  theory  of  the  triad  succeeds  in  maintaining  its  hold 
upon  Babylonian  minds  from  a  certain  period  on,  through 
all  political  and  intellectual  vicissitudes.  To  invoke  Anu, 
Bel,  and  Ea  becomes  a  standing  formula  that  the  rulers 
of  Babylonia  as  well  as  of  Assyria  are  fond  of  employing. 
These  three  are  the  great  gods  par  excellence.  They  occupy  a 
place  of  their  own.  The  kings  do  not  feel  as  close  to  them 
as  to  Marduk,  or  to  Ashur,  or  even  to  the  sun-god,  or  to  the 
moon-god.  The  invocation  of  the  triad  partakes  more  of  a 
formal  character,  as  though  in  giving  to  these  three  gods  the 
first  place,  the  writers  felt  that  they  were  following  an  ancient 
precedent  that  had  more  of  a  theoretical  than  a  practical  value 
for  their  clays.  So  among  Assyrian  rulers,  Ashur-rish-ishi 
{c.  1 150  b.c.)  derives  his  right  to  the  throne  from  the  authority 
with  which  he  is  invested  by  the  triad.  Again,  in  the  formal 
curses  which  the  kings  called  down  upon  the  destroyers  of 
the  inscriptions  or  statues  that  they  set  up,  the  appeal  to  Anu, 
Bel,  and  Ea  is  made.  Ashurnasirbal  calls  upon  the  triad  not 
to  listen  to  the  prayers  of  such  as  deface  his  monuments. 
Sargon  has  an  interesting  statement  in  one  of  his  inscrip- 
tions, according  to  which  the  names  of  the  months  were 
fixed  by  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea.  This  '  archaeological '  theory 
illustrates  very  well  the  extraneous  position  occupied  by  the 
triad.  The  months,  as  we  shall  see,  are  sacred,  each  to  a 
different  god.  The  gods  thus  distinguished  are  the  ones  that 
are  directly  concerned  in  the  fortunes  of  the  state,  —  Sin, 
Ashur,  Ishtar,  and  the  like.  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea  are  not  in  the 
list,  and  the  tradition,  or  rather  the  dogma  according  to  which 
they  assign  the  names  is  evidently  an  attempt  to  make  good 


150  BABYLON] AN- ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

this  omission  by  placing  them,  as  it  were,  beyond  the  reach  of 
the  calendar.  In  short,  so  far  as  the  historical  texts  are  con- 
cerned which  reflect  the  popular  beliefs,  the  triad  represents  a 
theological  doctrine  rather  than  a  living  force.  In  combina- 
tion, Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea  did  not  mean  as  much,  nor  the 
same  thing,  to  a  Babylonian  or  an  Assyrian,  as  when  he  said 
Marduk,  or  Nabu.  or  Ashur,  or  Sin,  as  the  case  might  be.  It 
was  different  when  addressing  these  gods  individually,  as  was 
occasionally  done.  The  Assyrians  were  rather  fond  of  intro- 
ducing Anu  by  himself  in  their  prayers,  and  the  Babylonians 
were  prompted  to  a  frequent  mention  of  Ea  by  virtue  of  his 
relationship  to  Marduk,  but  when  this  was  done  Anu  and  Ea 
meant  something  different  than  when  mentioned  in  one  breath 
along  with  Bel. 

Belit. 

One  might  have  supposed  that  when  Bel  became  Marduk, 
the  consort  of  Bel  would  also  become  Marduk's  consort. 
Such,  however,  does  not  appear  to  be  the  case,  at  least  so  far 
as  the  epoch  of  Hammurabi  is  concerned.  When  he  calls 
himself  '  the  beloved  shepherd  of  Belit,'  it  is  the  wife  of  the 
old  Bel  that  is  meant,  and  so  when  Agumkakrimi  mentions 
Bel  and  Belit  together,  as  the  gods  that  decree  his  fate  on 
earth,  there  is  no  doubt  as  to  what  Belit  is  meant.  In  later 
days,  however,  and  in  Assyria  more  particularly,  there  seems 
to  be  a  tendency  towards  generalizing  the  name  (much  as  that 
of  Bel)  to  the  extent  of  applying  it  in  the  sense  of  'mistress' 
to  the  consort  of  the  chief  god  of  the  pantheon ;  and  that 
happening  to  be  Ashur  in  Assyria  accounts  for  the  fact,  which 
might  otherwise  appear  strange,  that  Tiglathpilcser  I.  (c.  1140 
B.C.)  calls  belit  the  '  lofty  consort  and  beloved  of  Ashur.' 
Ashurbanabal  (668-626  B.C.)  does  the  same,  and  even  goes 
further  and  declares  himself  to  be  the  offspring  of  Ashur  and 
Belit.     On  the  other  hand,  in  the  interval  between  these  two 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DA  YS  OF  HAMMURABI.     151 

kings  we  find  Shalmaneser  II.  (860-825  BX)  calling  Belit  '  the 
mother  of  the  great  gods'  and  'the  wife  of  Bel,'  making  it  evi- 
dent that  the  old  Belit  of  the  south  is  meant,  and  since  Ashur- 
banabal  on  one  occasion  also  calls  the  goddess  '  the  beloved  of 
Bel,'1  it  follows  that  in  his  days  two  Belits  were  still  recognized, 
or  perhaps  it  would  be  more  accurate  to  say  two  uses  of  the 
term,  —  one  specifically  for  the  consort  of  the  Babylonian  Bel, 
the  god  of  the  earth,  with  his  ancient  seat  at  Nippur;  the  other 
of  a  more  general  character,  though  still  limited  as  '  lady '  to 
the  consort  of  the  chief  gods,  just  as  '  Bel,'  while  acquiring  the 
general  sense  of  '  lord,'  was  restricted  in  actual  usage  to  the 
greatest  '  lords  '  only.  An  indication  of  this  distinction,  some- 
what parallel  to  the  addition  of  Dagan  to  Bel,  to  indicate  that  the 
old  Bel  was  meant,2  appears  in  the  sobriquet  'of  Babylonia,' 3 
which  Ashurbanabal  gives  to  the  goddess  in  one  place  where 
the  old  Belit  is  meant.  Under  the  influence  of  this  Assyrian 
extension  of  the  term,  Nabopolassar,  in  the  Neo-Babylonian 
period,  applies  the  title  to  the  consort  of  Shamash  at  Sippar, 
but  he  is  careful  to  specify  '  Belit  of  Sippar,'  in  order  to  avoid 
misunderstanding.  Besides  being  applied  to  the  consorts  of 
Ashur  and  of  Shamash,  '  Belit,'  in  the  general  sense  of  '  mis- 
tress,' is  applied  only  to  another  goddess,  the  great  Ishtar  of  the 
Assyrian  pantheon  —  generally,  however,  as  a  title,  not  as  a 
name  of  the  goddess.  The  important  position  she  occupied  in 
the  Assyrian  pantheon  seemed  to  justify  this  further  modifica- 
tion and  extension  in  the  use  of  the  term.  Occasionally,  Ishtar  is 
directly  and  expressly  called  '  Belit.'  So,  Ashurbanabal  speaks 
of  a  temple  that  he  has  founded  in  Calah  to  '  Belit  mati,'  4  '  the 
Belit  (or  lady)  of  the  land,'  where  the  context  speaks  in  favor 
of    identifying    Belit   with   the    great    goddess    Ishtar.      Again 

1  Rassam,  Cylinder  ix.  75. 

2  See  chapter  xii.,  "  The  Assyrian  Pantheon,"  p.  208. 

3  Rassam,  Cylinder  viii.  9S,  99.      '  Belit  of  Babylonia,  honored  among  the  great 
gods.' 

4  Annals,  iii.  135. 


152  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Ashurbanabal,  in  a  dedicatory  inscription  giving  an  account  of 
improvements  made  in  the  temple  of  Ishtar,  addresses  the 
goddess  as  Belit  '  lady  of  lands,  dwelling  in  E-mash-mash.' ' 


Anu  and  Anatum. 

In  the  second  period  of  Babylonian  history  the  worship  of 
the  supreme  god  of  heaven  becomes  even  more  closely  bound 
up  with  Ami's  position  as  the  first  member  of  the  inseparable 
triad  than  was  the  case  in  the  first  period.  For  Hammurabi, 
as  has  been  noted,  Anu  is  only  a  half-real  figure  who  in 
association  with  Bel  is  represented  as  giving  his  endorsement 
to  the  king's  authority.2  The  manner  in  which  Agumka- 
krimi  introduces  Anu  is  no  less  characteristic  for  the  age 
of  Hammurabi  and  his  successors.  At  the  beginning  of  his 
long  inscription,3  he  enumerates  the  chief  gods  under  whose 
protection  he  places  himself.  As  a  Cassitic  ruler,  he  assigns 
the  first  place  to  the  chief  Cassite  deity,  Shukamuna,  a  god  of 
war  whom  the  Babylonian  scholars  identified  with  their  own 
Nergal.4  Shukamuna  is  followed  by  the  triad  Anu,  Bel,  and 
Ea.  Marduk  occupies  a  fifth  place,  after  which  comes  a 
second  triad,  Sin,  Shamash  "the  mighty  hero,"  and  Ishtar'' 
"  the  strong  one  among  the  gods."  The  inscription  is  devoted 
to  the  king's  successful  capture  of  the  statues  of  Marduk  and 
Sarpanitum  out  of  the  hands  of  the  Khani,  and  the  restoration 

1  The  name  of  the  temple.  See  IIR.  66,  11.  i  and  io.  The  title  'belit  matati,' 
'  lady  of  the  lands '  is  evidently  introduced  in  imitation  of  '  bel  matati,'  '  lord  of  lands,' 
belonging  to  Bel  and  then  to  Marduk. 

-  Sayce's  view  (Hibbert  Lectures,  p.  186),  according  to  which  Anu  was  originally 
the  local  god  ol  Erech,  is  erroneous. 

3  VR.pl.  33. 

4  Delitzsch,  Die  Kossaer,  pp.  25,  27. 

6  The  omission  of  Kamnian  here,  though  invoked  at  the  close  of  the  inscription. 
is  noticeable.  Ishtar  takes  the  place  that  in  the  more  developed  system  belongs  to 
the  nod  of  storms,  who  with  the  moon-god  and  sun-god  constitutes  a  second  triad. 
See  p.  16 ;. 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DA  YS  OF  HAMMURABI.     153 

of  the  shrines  of  these  deities  at  Babylon.     At  the  close,  the 

king  Agumkakrimi  appeals  to  Anu  and  his  consort  Anatum,1 

who  are  asked  to  bless  the  king  in   heaven,  to  Bel  and   Belit 

who  are  asked  to  fix  his  fate  on  earth,  and  to   Ea  and  Dam- 

kina,  inhabiting  the  deep,2  who  are  to  grant  him  long  life.      As 

in  the  beginning  of  the  inscription,  the  thought  of  the  triad - 

Anu,  Bel,  Ea  —  evidently  underlies  this  interesting  invocation, 

but  at  the  same   time  the  association  of  a  consort  with  Anu 

brings  the  god  into  closer  relationship  with  his  fellows.      He 

takes    on  —  if    the    contradiction   in  terms    be    permitted  —  a 

more  human  shape.     His  consort  bears  a  name  that  is  simply 

the  feminine  form  to  Anu,  just  as  Belit  is  the  feminine  to  Bel. 

'Anu,'  signifying  'the   one   on  high,'- -a  feminine   to   it  was 

formed,  manifestly  under  the  influence  of  the  notion  that  every 

god  must  have  a  consort  of  some  kind.    After  Agumkakrimi  no 

further  mention  of  Anatum  occurs,  neither  in  the  inscriptions 

of  Babylonian  nor  of  Assyrian  rulers.     We  are  permitted  to 

conclude,  therefore,  that  Anatum  was  a  product  of  the  schools, 

and  one  that  never  took  a  strong  hold  on  the  popular  mind. 

Among  the  Assyrian   kings  who  in  other  respects  also  show 

less  dependence  upon  the  doctrines  evolved  in  the  Babylonian 

schools,  and  whose  inscriptions  reflect  to  a  greater  degree  the 

purely  popular  phases   of  the   faith,  we  find  Anu  mentioned 

with  tolerable   frequency,   and  in  a  manner  that   betrays  less 

emphasis  upon  the  position   of  the  god   as   a  member  of  the 

triad.      Still,  it  is  rather  curious  that  he  does  not  appear  even 

in  the  inscriptions  of  the  Assyrian    kings  by  himself,  but   in 

association  with  another  god.     Thus  Tiglathpileser  I.  (c.  1130 

B.C.)  gives  an  elaborate  account  of  an  old  temple  to  Anu  and 

1  Written  with  the  sign  An,  and  the  feminine  ending  turn,  but  probably  pronounced 
Anatum.  The  form  Anat  (without  the  ending)  is  used  by  many  scholars,  as  Sarpanit 
and  Tashmit  are  used  instead  of  Sarpanitum  and  Tashmitum.  I  prefer  the  fuller 
forms  of  these  names.  Anum  similarly  is  better  than  Anu,  but  the  latter  has  become 
so  common  that  it  might  as  well  be  retained. 

2  VR.  33,  vii.  34-44. 


154  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Ramman  in  the  city  of  Ashur  that  he  restores  to  more  than 
its  former  grandeur.1  This  dedication  of  a  temple  to  two 
deities  is  unusual.  Ramman  is  the  god  of  thunder  and  storms, 
whose  seat  of  course  is  in  the  heavens.  He  stands  close, 
therefore,  to  Ann,  the  supreme  god  of  heaven.  In  the  religious 
productions,  this  relationship  is  expressed  by  making  Ramman 
the  son  of  Anu.  From  a  passage  descriptive  of  this  temple  it 
would  appear  that  the  old  temple  founded  by  King  Samsi- 
Ramman,  who  lived  several  centuries  before  Tigiathpileser, 
was  dedicated  to  Ramman.  It  looks,  therefore,  as  though  the 
association  of  Anu  with  Ramman  was  the  work  of  the  later 
king.  What  his  motive  was  in  thus  combining  Anu  with 
Ramman  it  is  difficult  to  say,  but  in  his  account  of  the  res- 
toration of  the  sanctuary,  he  so  consistently  mentions  Anu  and 
Ramman  together,2  designating  them  unitedly  as  'the  great 
gods  my  lords,'  that  one  gains  the  impression  that  the  two  were 
inseparable  in  his  mind,  Ramman  being  perhaps  regarded 
simply  as  a  manifestation  of  Anu.  The  supposition  finds  some 
support  in  the  closing  words  of  the  inscription,  where,  in  hurl- 
ing the  usual  curses  upon  those  who  should  attempt  to  destroy 
his  monuments,  he  invokes  Ramman  alone,  whom  he  asks  to 
punish  the  offender  by  his  darts,  by  hunger,  by  distress  of  every 
kind,  and  by  death. 

Elsewhere  Anu  appears  in  association  with  Dagan,  of  whom 
we  shall  have  occasion  to  speak  in  the  chapter  on  the  Assyrian 
pantheon.  Suffice  it  to  say  here  that  Dagan  in  this  connection 
is  an  equivalent  of  Bel.  When,  therefore,  Ashurbanabal  and 
Saigon  call  themselves  'the  favorite  of  Anu  and  Dagan,'  it  is 
the  same  as  though  they  spoke  of  Anu  and  Bel.  Apart  from1 
this,  Anu  only  appears  when  a  part  or  the  whole  of  the  Assyrian 
pantheon  is  enumerated.  Thus  we  come  across  Anu,  Ramman, 
and  Ishtar  as  the  chief  gods  of  the  city  of   Ashur,"  and   again 

1  IK.  pi.  14,  col.  vii.  71,  viii.  88.  2  No  less  than  nine  times. 

:!  Tigiathpileser  I. 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DAYS  OF  HAMMURABI.     ]55 

Anu,  Ashur,  Shamash,  Ramman,  and  Ishtar.1  Finally,  Sargon 
who  names  the  eight  gates  of  his  palace  after  the  chief  gods  of 
the  land  does  not  omit  Anu,  whom  he  describes  as  the  'one  who 
blesses  his  handiwork.'  Otherwise  we  have  Anu  only  when 
the  triad  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea  is  invoked.  Once  Ramman-nirari  I. 
{c.  1325  B.C.)  adds  Ishtar  to  the  triad.  After  Sargon  we  no 
longer  find  Anu's  name  at  all  among  the  deities  worshipped  in 
Assyria.  On  the  whole,  then,  Anu's  claim  to  reverence  rests 
in  Assyria  as  well  as  in  Babylonia  upon  his  position  in  the  triad, 
and  while  Assyria  is  less  influenced  by  the  ancient  system 
devised  in  Babylonia  whereby  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea  come  to  be  the 
representatives  of  the  three  kingdoms  among  which  the  gods 
are  distributed,  still  Anu  as  a  specific  deity,  ruling  in  his  own 
right,  remains  a  rather  shadowy  figure.  The  only  temple  in  his 
honor  is  the  one  which  he  shares  with  Ramman,  and  which, 
as  noted,  appears  to  have  been  originally  devoted  to  the  ser- 
vice of  the  latter.  One  other  factor  that  must  be  taken  into 
account  to  explain  the  disappearance  of  Anu  is  the  gradual 
enforcement  of  Ashur's  claim  to  the  absolute  headship  of  the 
Assyrian  pantheon.  Either  Anu  or  Ashur  had  to  be  assigned 
to  this  place,  and  when  circumstances  decided  the  issue  in 
favor  of  Ashur,  there  was  no  place  worthy  of  Anu  as  a  specific 
deity.  Ashur  usurps  in  a  measure  the  role  of  Anu.  So  far  as 
Babylonia  was  concerned,  there  was  still  in  the  twelfth  century 
B.C.  a  city  '  Der  '  which  is  called  the  '  city  of  Anu.'  The  city 
is  probably  of  very  ancient  foundation,  and  its  continued  asso- 
ciation with  Anu  forms  an  interesting  survival  of  a  local  con- 
ception that  appears  to  have  been  once  current  of  the  god. 

In  the  religious  literature,  especially  in  that  part  of  it  which 
furnishes  us  with  the  scholastic  recastings  of  the  popular  tradi- 
tions, Anu  is  a  much  more  prominent  figure  than  in  the  his- 
torical texts.  From  being  merely  the  personification  of  the 
heavens,  he  is  raised  to  the  still  higher  dignity  of  symbolizing, 

1  Ramman-nirari  I. 


156  BA A  YLONIA N-ASS YRIAN  RELIGION. 

as  Jensen  puts  it,1  the  abstract  principle  of  which  both  the 
heavens  and  earth  are  emanations.  All  the  earliest  gods  con- 
ceived of  by  popular  tradition  as  existing  from  the  beginning 
of  things  are  viewed  as  manifestations  of  Anu,  or  of  Ami  and 
Anatum  in  combination.  He  gives  ear  to  prayers,  but  he  is  not 
approached  directly.  The  gods  are  his  messengers,  who  come 
and  give  him  report  of  what  is  going  on.2  He  is  a  god  for  the 
gods  rather  than  for  men.  When  his  daughter  Ishtar  is  insulted 
she  appeals  to  her  father  Anu  ;  and  when  the  gods  are  terrified 
they  take  refuge  with  Anu.  Armed  with  a  mighty  weapon 
whose  assault  nothing  can  withstand,  Anu  is  surrounded  by  a 
host  of  gods  and  powerful  spirits  who  are  ready  to  follow  his 
lead  and  to  do  his  service. 

Ramman. 

With  Ramman  we  reach  a  deity  whose  introduction  into  the 
babylonian  pantheon  and  whose  position  therein  appears  to  be 
entirely  independent  of  Marduk. 

The  reading  of  the  name  as  Ramman  (or  Rammanu)  is  pro- 
visional. The  ideograph  Im  with  which  the  name  is  written 
designates  the  god  as  the  power  presiding  over  storms ;  and 
while  it  is  certain  that,  in  Assyria  at  least,  the  god  was  known 
as  Ramman,  which  means  '  the  thunderer,'  it  is  possible  that 
this  was  an  epithet  given  to  the  god,  and  not  his  real  or  his 
oldest  name.  It  is  significant  that  in  the  El-Amarna  tablets 
(c.  i'5°o  B.C.),  where  the  god  Im  appears  as  an  element  in 
proper  names,  the  reading  Addu  is  vouched  for,  and  this 
form  has  been  justly  brought  into  connection  with  a  very  famous 
solar  deity  of  Syria,—  I  ladad.  The  worship  of  I  ladad,  we  know, 
was  widely  spread  in  Palestine  and  Syria,  and  there  is  conclu- 
sive evidence  that  I  ladad  (or  Adad),  as  a  name  for  the  god  /;;/, 
was  known  in  Babylonia.      Professor  Oppert  is  of  the  opinion 

'  Kosmologie,  p.  274.  '-'  Sec  the  list  I1IW.  68,26  seq. 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DAYS  OF  HAMMURABI.     157 

that  Adad  represents  the  oldest  name  of  the  god.  Quite 
recently  the  proposition  has  been  made  that  the  real  name  of 
the  deity  was  Immeru}  The  ideograph  in  this  case  would  arise 
through  the  curtailment  of  the  name  (as  is  frequently  the  case 
in  the  cuneiform  syllabary),  and  the  association  of  Im  with 
'  storm '  and  '  wind '  would  be  directly  dependent  upon  the 
nature  of  the  deity  in  question.  The  material  at  hand  is  not 
sufficient  for  deciding  the  question.  Besides  Immeru,  Adad, 
and  Ramman,  the  deity  was  also  known  as  Mer —  connected 
apparently  with  Immeru.2  So  much  is  certain,  that  Ramman 
appears  to  have  been  the  name  currently  used  in  Assyria  for 
this  god.  Adad  may  have  been  employed  occasionally  in  Baby- 
lonia, as  was  Mer  in  proper  names,  but  that  it  was  not  the 
common  designation  is  proved  by  a  list  of  gods  (published  by 
Bezold  ;i)  in  which  the.  foreign  equivalent  for  Im  is  set  clown  as 
Adad.  We  may  for  the  present,  therefore,  retain  Ramman, 
while  bearing  in  mind  that  we  have  only  proof  of  its  being  an 
epithet  applied  to  the  god,  not  necessarily  his  real  name  and 
in  all  probabilities  not  the  oldest  name. 

We  meet  with  the  god  for  the  first  time  in  the  hymn  to  which 
reference  has  already  been  made,4  and  where  the  god  is  men- 
tioned together  with  Shamash.  If  the  suggestion  above  thrown 
out  is  correct,  that  the  hymn  is  older  than  the  days  of  Ham- 
murabi, Ramman  too  would  be  older  than  his  first  mention  in 
historical  texts.  However,  it  is  worthy  of  note  that  in  this 
hymn  each  of  the  other  gods  mentioned  receives  a  line  for  him- 
self, and  that  Ramman  is  the  only  one  who  is  tacked  on  to 
another  deity.      It  is  not  strange  that  in  making  copies  of  older 

1  Thureau-Dangin,  Journal  Asiatiqitc,  1S95,  pp.  3S5-393.  The  name  of  this 
deity  has  been  the  subject  of  much  discussion.  For  a  full  discussion  of  the  subject 
with  an  account  of  the  recent  literature,  see  an  article  by  the  writer  in  The  American 
Journal  of  Semitic  Languages  and  Literatures,  xii.  159-162. 

2  Arising  perhaps  after  Im  came  into  use  as  the  ideographic  form. 

3  Proc.  Soc.  Bibl.  Arch.,  xi.  173-174  and  pi.  1,  col.  i.  7. 

4  See  p.  145  and  also  p.  161. 


1 58  SAB  YLONIAN-ASS YR1AN  RELIGION. 

texts,  especially  those  of  a  religious  character,  the  scribes  should 
have  introduced  certain  modifications.  At  all  events,  the  god 
does  not  acquire  any  degree  of  prominence  until  the  days  of 
Hammurabi;  so  that  whatever  his  age  and  origin,  he  belongs  in 
a  peculiar  sense  to  the  pantheon  of  Hammurabi  rather  than  to 
that  of  the  old  Babylonian  period.  The  successor  of  Ham- 
murabi, Samsu-iluna,  dedicates  a  fort,  known  as  Dur-padda,  to 
Ram  man  whom  he  addresses  as  his '  helper,'  along  with  several 
other  gods.  Despite  this  fact,  his  worship  does  not  appear  to 
have  been  very  firmly  established  in  Babylonia,  for  Agum- 
kakrimi,  who  follows  upon  Samsu-iluna,  does  not  make  mention 
of  Ramman.  During  the  reign  of  the  Cassite  dynasty,  how- 
ever, the  worship  of  Ramman  appears  to  have  gained  a  stronger 
foothold.  Several  kings  of  this  dynasty  have  incorporated  the 
name  of  this  deity  into  their  own  names,  and  in  an  inscription 
dealing  with  events  that  transpired  in  the  reign  of  one  of  these 
kings,  Ramman  occupies  a  prominent  place.  Immediately  after 
the  great  triad,  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea,  there  is  enumerated  a  second, 
Sin,  Shamash,  and  Ramman,  and  only  then  there  follows 
Marduk.1  More  than  this,  Ramman  is  introduced  for  a  sec- 
ond time  in  conjunction  with  Shamash,  as  in  the  hymn  of  Ham- 
murabi. The  two  are  appealed  to  as  '  the  divine  lords  of 
justice.'  The  conqueror  of  the  Cassites,  Nebuchadnezzar  I., 
also  holds  Ramman  in  high  esteem.  For  him,  Ramman  is 
the  god  of  battle  who  in  companionship  with  Ishtar  abets  the 
king  in  his  great  undertakings.  He  addresses  Ramman  as 
the  great  lord  of  heaven,  the  lord  of  subterranean  waters  and 
of  rain,  whose  curse  is  invoked  against  the  one  who  sets  aside 
the  decrees  of  Nebuchadnezzar  or  who  defaces  the  monument 
the  king  sets  up.  While  acknowledging  the  supremacy  of 
Marduk,  upon  whose  appeal  he  proceeds  to  Babylonia  to  rid 
the   country   of    its   oppressors,   Nebuchadnezzar  nevertheless 

1  Belser  in  Haupt  and  Delitzsch,  Beitr'dge  zur  Assyriologie,\\.  187  seq.,  col.  vi.  1. 

3  sc'l- 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DAYS  OF  HAMMURABI.     159 

shows  remarkable  partiality  for  Ramman,  perhaps  as  a  matter 
of  policy  to  offset  the  supposed  preference  shown  by  Ramman 
towards  the  previous  dynasty.  Ramman  with  Nergal  and  Nana 
are  also  enumerated  as  the  special  gods  of  Namar  —  a  Babylonian 
district  which  caused  the  king  considerable  annoyance,  and 
which  may  have  been  one  of  the  strongholds  whence  the 
Cassitic  kings  continued  their  attacks  upon  Nebuchadnezzar. 
In  order  to  determine  more  precisely  the  nature  of  this  deity, 
it  is  necessary  to  turn  to  Assyria,  where  his  worship  dates  from 
the  very  earliest  times,  and  where  he  appears  consistently  in  a 
single  role,  —  that  of  the  god  of  storms,  more  particularly  of 
thunder  and  lightning.  The  oldest  Assyrian  ruler  known  to  us 
is  Samsi-Ramman  (c.  1850  B.C.),  whose  name,  containing  the 
god  as  one  of  its  elements,  points  to  the  antiquity  of  the  cult  of 
Ramman  in  the  north.  Another  king  who  has  frequently  been 
mentioned,  Ramman-nirari  (i.e.,  Ramman  is  my  helper),  bears 
evidence  to  the  same  effect,  and  Tiglathpileser  I.  speaks  of  a 
temple  to  Ramman  whose  foundation  carries  us  back  several 
centuries  beyond  the  period  of  these  two  kings  —  almost  to 
the  days  of  Hammurabi.  The  theory  has  accordingly  been 
advanced  that  the  worship  of  Ramman  came  to  Babylonia 
from  the  north,  and  since  the  cult  of  this  same  god  is  found  in 
Damascus  and  extended  as  far  south  as  the  plain  of  Jezreel, 
the  further  conclusion  has  been  drawn  that  the  god  is  of 
Aramaic  origin  and  was  brought  to  Assyria  through  Aramaic 
tribes  who  had  settled  in  parts  of  Assyria.  The  great  an- 
tiquity of  the  Ramman  cult  in  Assyria  argues  against  a  foreign 
origin.  It  seems  more  plausible  to  regard  the  Ramman  cult  as 
indigenous  to  Assyria ;  but  reverting  to  a  time  when  the  popu- 
lation of  the  north  was  still  in  the  nomadic  state  of  civilization, 
the  cult  may  have  been  carried  to  the  west  by  some  of  the 
wandering  tribes  who  afterwards  established  themselves  around 
Damascus.  Up  to  a  late  period  Aramaic  hordes  appear  from 
time  to  time  in  western  Assyria  ;   and  in  a  higher  stage  of  cul- 


160  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

ture,  contact  between  Aramaeans  and  Assyrians  was  maintained 
by  commercial  intercourse  and  by  warfare.  Since  the  earliest 
mention  of  Ramman's  cult  is  in  the  city  of  Ashur,  it  may  be 
that  he  was  originally  connected  with  that  place.  As  already 
intimated,  he  was  essentially  a  storm-god,  whose  manifestation 
was  seen  in  the  thunder  and  lightning,  and  the  god  was  known 
not  merely  as  '  the  thunderer,'  but  also  as  Barku,  i.e.,  lightning. 
Perhaps  it  was  because  of  this  that  he  was  also  brought  into 
association  with  the  great  light  of  heaven,  —  the  sun-god.  In 
many  mythologies,  the  sun  and  lightning  are  regarded  as 
correlated  forces.  At  all  events,  the  frequent  association  of 
Shamash  and  Ramman  cannot  have  been  accidental.  This 
double  nature  of  Ramman  —  as  a  solar  deity  representing  some 
particular  phase  of  the  sun  that  escapes  us  and  as  a  storm-god 
-  still  peers  through  the  inscription  above  noted  from  the  Cas- 
site  period  where  Ramman  is  called  'the  lord  of  justice,'  —  an 
attribute  peculiar  to  the  sun-god  ;  but  in  Assyria  his  role  as 
the  thunder-  and  storm-god  overshadows  any  other  attributes 
that  he  may  have  had. 

There  are  two  aspects  to  rainstorms  in  Babylonia.  The 
flooding  of  the  fields  while  committing  much  havoc  is  essential 
to  the  fertility  of  the  soil.  Ramman  is  therefore  the  carrier 
of  blessings  to  the  cities,  the  one  who  supplies  wells  and  fields 
with  water;  but  the  destructive  character  of  the  rain  and 
thunder  and  lightning  are  much  more  strongly  emphasized 
than  their  beneficent  aspects.  Even  though  the  fields  be 
flooded,  Ramman  can  cause  thorns  to  grow  instead  of  herbs. 
The  same  ideograph  /;//  that  signifies  Ramman  also  means 
distress.  When  the  failure  of  the  crops  brings  in  its  wake 
hunger  and  desolation,  it  is  the  'god  of  the  clouds,'  the  'god 
of  rain,'  the  'god  of  the  overflow,'  whose  wrath  has  thus  mani- 
fested itself.  It  is  he  who  (as  a  hymn  puts  it)  'has  eaten 
the  land.'  No  wonder  that  the  'roar'  of  the  god  is  described 
as  'powerful,'  and  that   he  is  asked  to  stand  at  the   right  side 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DA  YS  OF  HAMMURABI.     161 

of  the  petitioner  and  grant  protection.  When  Ramman  lets 
his  voice  resound,  misfortune  is  at  hand.  It  was  natural 
that  he  who  thus  presided  over  the  battle  of  the  elements 
should  come  to  be  conceived  essentially  as  a  god  of  war  to  a 
people  whose  chief  occupation  grew  to  be  conquest.  As  such 
he  appears  constantly  in  the  inscriptions  of  Assyrian  kings, 
and  to  such  a  degree  as  to  be  a  formidable  rival,  at  times,  to 
the  head  of  the  Assyrian  pantheon.  The  final  victory  of  the 
Assyrian  arms  is  generally  attributed  to  Ashur  alone,  but  just 
before  the  battle  and  in  the  midst  of  the  fray,  Ramraan's  pres- 
ence is  felt  almost  as  forcibly  as  that  of  Ashur.  He  shares 
with  the  latter  the  honor  of  invocations  and  sacrifices  at  such 
critical  moments.  In  this  capacity  Ramman  is  so  essentially  an 
Assyrian  god  that  it  will  be  proper  to  dwell  upon  him  again  in 
the  following  chapter,  when  the  specially  Assyrian  phases  of 
the  religion  we  are  investigating  will  be  taken  up.  The  consort 
of  Ramman  also,  the  goddess  Shala,  will  best  be  treated  of  in 
connection  with  the  Assyrian  phases  of  the  Ramman  cult. 

Of  the  other  gods  whose  names  occur  in  the  inscriptions  of 
Hammurabi,  but  little  of  a  special  character  is  to  be  noted. 
The  attributes  that  he  gives  them  do  not  differ  from  those  that 
we  come  across  in  the  texts  of  his  predecessors.  It  is  sufficient, 
therefore,  to  enumerate  them.  The  longest  list  is  furnished  by 
the  hymn  which  has  already  been  referred  to.  The  text  is  unfor- 
tunately fragmentary,  and  so  we  cannot  be  sure  that  the  names 
embrace  the  entire  pantheon  worshipped  by  him.  The  list 
opens  with  Bel  (who,  as  we  have  seen,  is  the  old  Bel  of  Nippur)  ; 
then  follow  Sin,  Ninib,  Ishtar,  Shamash,  Ramman.  Here  the 
break  in  the  tablet  begins  and,  when  the  text  again  becomes 
intelligible,  a  deity  is  praised  in  such  extravagant  terms  that 
one  is  tempted  to  conclude  that  Hammurabi  has  added  to  an 
old  hymn  a  paean  to  his  favorite  Marduk.1     To  Bel  is  given 

1  The  character  of  this  part  of  the  hymn  is  quite  different  from  that  which  precedes. 


L62  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

the  honor  of  having  granted  royal  dignity  to  the  king.  Sin  has 
given  the  king  his  princely  glory;  from  Ninib,  the  king  has 
received  a  powerful  weapon ;  Ishtar  fixes  the  battle  array,  while 
Shamash  and  Ramman  hold  themselves  at  the  service  of  the 
king.  With  this  list,  however,  we  are  far  from  having  exhausted 
the  pantheon  as  it  had  developed  in  the  days  of  Hammurabi. 
From  the  inscriptions  of  his  successors  we  are  permitted  to  add 
the  following  :  Nin-khar-sag,  Nergal,  and  Lugal-mit-tu,  furnished 
by  Samsu-iluna  ;  Shukamuna,  by  Agumkakrimi ;  and  passing 
down  to  the  period  of  the  Cassite  dynasty,  we  have  in  addition 
Nin-dim-su,  Ba-kad,  Pap-u,  Belit-ekalli,  Shumalia.1 

During  the  Cassitic  rule,  Marduk  does  not  play  the  pro- 
minent part  that  he  did  under  the  native  rulers,  but  he  is 
restored  to  his  position  by  Nebuchadnezzar  I.,  who,  it  will  be 
recalled,  succeeds  in  driving  the  Cassites  out  of  power.  But 
besides  Marduk,  Nebuchadnezzar  invokes  a  large  number  of 
other  deities.  For  purposes  of  comparison  with  the  pantheon 
of  Hammurabi,  and  of  his  immediate  successors,  I  give  the 
complete  list  and  in  the  order  mentioned  by  him  in  the  only 
inscription  that  we  have  of  this  king.  They  are  Ninib,  Gula, 
Ramman,  Shumalia,  Nergal,  Shir,  Shubu,  Sin,  Belit  of  Akkad. 
Moreover,  Anu  is  referred  to  as  the  especial  god  of  Der,  and  a 
goddess  Eria2  is  worshipped  in  Elam.  Passing  still  further 
down,  we  obtain  as  additional  names,  Malik  and  Bunene,  from 
the  inscription  of  Nabubaliddin  (c.  883-852  B.C.).8 

We  may  divide  this  long  period  from  Hammurabi  down  to 
the  time  that  the  governors  of  Babylonia  became  mere  puppets 
of  the  Assyrian  rulers  into  three  sections:  (1  )  Hammurabi  and 
his  successors,  (2)  the  Cassite  dynasty,  (3)  the  restoration  of 
native  rulers  to  the  throne.  A  comparison  of  the  names  fur- 
nished by  the  inscriptions  from  these  three  sections  shows  that 

1  For  further  notices  of  these  gods,  see  chapter  x.  -  See  above,  p.  122. 

3  One  might  include  in  the  list  also  Nin-igi-nangar-bu,  Gushgin-banda,  Nin-kurra, 
Nin-zadim  (from  Nabubaliddin's  inscription),  but  these  are  only  so  many  epithets 
of  Ea  or  various  forms  under  which  the  god  came  to  be  worshipped.     See  p.  177. 


THE  PANTHEON  IN  THE  DA  YS  OE  HAMMURABI.     163 

the  gods  common  to  all  are  Marduk,  Bel,  Shamash,  Ramman. 
But,  in  addition,  our  investigations  have  shown  that  we  are  justi- 
fied in  adding  the  following  as  forming  part  of  the  Babylonian 
pantheon  during  this  entire  period  s  Sarpanitum,  Belit,  Tash- 
mitum,  Sin,  Ninib,  Ishtar,  Nergal,  Nin-khar-sag,  and  the  two 
other  members  of  the  triad,  Anu  and  Ea,  with  their  consorts, 
Anatum  and  Damkina.  All  these  gods  and  goddesses  are  found 
in  the  texts  from  the  first  and  third  section  of  the  period,  and 
the  absence  of  some  of  them  from  texts  of  the  second  section 
is  simply  due  to  the  smaller  amount  of  material  that  we  have 
for  the  history  of  the  Cassite  dynasty  in  Babylonia.  Some  of 
the  deities  in  this  list,  which  is  far  from  being  exhaustive,1  are 
foreign,  so  e.g.,  Shukamuna  and  Shumalia,  who  belong  to  the 
Cassitic  pantheon  ;  others  are  of  purely  local  significance,  as 
Shir  and  Shubu.2  As  for  Sin,  Ninib,  and  Ishtar,  the  worship 
of  none  of  these  deities  assumes  any  great  degree  of  promi- 
nence during  this  period.  No  doubt  the  local  cult  was  con- 
tinued at  the  old  centers  much  as  before,  but  except  for  an 
occasional  invocation,  especially  in  the  closing  paragraphs  of 
an  inscription,  where  the  writers  were  fond  of  grouping  a  large 
array  of  deities  so  as  to  render  more  impressive  the  curses  upon 
enemies  and  vilifiers,  with  which  the  inscriptions  usually  ter- 
minated, they  do  not  figure  in  the  official  writings  of  the  time. 
Of  Sin,  it  is  of  some  importance  to  note  that  under  the  Cassite 
dynasty  he  stands  already  at  the  head  of  a  second  class  of 
triads  which  consists  of  Sin,  Shamash,  and  Ramman,  or  Ishtar 
(see  note  3  on  page  152),  and  that  through  the  inscription 
of  Nebuchadnezzar  I.,  we  learn  of  an  additional  district  of 
Babylonia,  —  that  of  Bit-Khabban,  where*  in  association  with 
Belit  of  Akkad,  the  consort  of  the  older  Bel,  he  was  worshipped 
as  the  patron  deity.      Nebuchadnezzar  himself  does   not  enu- 

1  We  may  now  look  forward  to  finding  many  more  gods  in  the  rich  material  for 
this  period  unearthed  by  the  University  of  Pennsylvania  Expedition  to  Niffer. 
2  See  chapter  x. 


164  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

merate  Sin  among  the  chief  gods.  Ninib  appears  in  the 
familiar  role  as  a  god  of  war.  After  Hammurabi  he  is  only 
mentioned  once  in  inscriptions  of  the  Cassitic  period  and  then 
again  in  the  days  of  Nebuchadnezzar  I.,  who  assigns  a  prom- 
inent place  to  him.  It  is  Ninib  who,  with  the  title  'king  of 
heaven  and  earth,'  leads  off  in  the  long  list  of  gods  whose 
curses  are  invoked  upon  the  king's  opponents.  Similarly,  the 
belligerent  character  of  Ishtar  is  the  only  phase  of  the  goddess 
dwelt  upon  during  this  period.  While  for  Agumkakrimi,  she 
still  occupies  a  comparatively  inferior  rank,  coming  seventh  in 
his  list,  Nebuchadnezzar  places  her  immediately  after  Arm 
and  before  Ramman  and  Marduk.  This  advance  foreshadows 
the  superior  role  that  she  is  destined  to  play  in  the  pantheon 
during  the  period  of  Assyrian  supremacy.  The  cult  of  Nergal 
does  not  figure  prominently  during  this  period.  In  fact,  so 
far  as  the  historical  texts  go,  he  disappears  from  the  scene 
till  the  time  of  Nebuchadnezzar  I.,  when  he  is  incidentally 
invoked  in  a  group  with  Ramman  and  Nana,  as  the  gods  of  a 
district  in  Babylonia  known  as  Namar.  Exactly  where  Namar 
lay  has  not  yet  been  ascertained.  Since  Nergal,  as  was  shown 
in  the  previous  chapter,  was  the  local  patron  of  Cuthah,  it  may 
be  that  the  latter  city  was  included  in  the  Namar  district.  At 
all  events,  we  may  conclude  from  the  silence  of  the  texts  as  to 
Nergal,  that  Cutha  played  no  conspicuous  part  in  the  empire 
formed  of  the  Babylonian  states,  and  that  the  cult  of  Nergal, 
apart  from  the  association  of  the  deity  in  religious  texts  with  the 
lower  world,  did  not  during  this  entire  period  extend  beyond 
local  proportions.  Lastly,  it  is  interesting  to  note  that  Samsu- 
iluna,  the  son  of  Hammurabi,  refers  to  Belit  of  Nippur  as  Nin- 
khar-sag,  which  we  have  seen  was  one  of  her  oldest  titles. 


CHAPTER    IX. 

THE  GODS   IN   THE  TEMPLE   LISTS  AND  IN  THE   LEGAL  AND 
COMMERCIAL   DOCUMENTS. 

Besides  the  historical  texts  in  the  proper  sense,  there  is  an- 
other source  for  the  study  of  the  Babylonian  pantheon. 

Both  for  the  first  and  for  the  second  periods  we  now  have  a 
large  number  of  lists  of  offerings  made  to  the  temples  of  Baby- 
lonia and  of  thousands  of  miscellaneous  legal  documents.  De 
Sarzec  found  a  number  of  such  documents  at  Telloh  some 
years  ago,  and  quite  recently  some  thirty  thousand  tablets  of 
the  temple  archives  have  come  to  light.1  At  Tell-Sifr,  Abu- 
Habba,  and  elsewhere,  many  thousands  also  have  been  found, 
belonging  chiefly  to  the  second  period.  A  feature  of  these 
documents  is  the  invocation  of  the  gods,  introduced  for  various 
purposes,  at  times  in  connection  with  oaths,  at  times  as  a 
guarantee  against  the  renewal  of  claims.  Again,  certain  gods 
are  appealed  to  as  witnesses  to  an  act,  and  in  the  lists  of 
temple  offerings,  gods  are  constantly  introduced.  Since  many 
of  the  commercial  transactions  recorded  in  these  documents, 
moreover,  concern  the  temples  of  Babylonia,  further  occasions 
were  found  for  the  mention  of  a  god  or  gods.  The  proper 
names  occurring  in  these  documents,  compounded  as  these 
names    in    most    cases    are   with    some    deity,2    furnish    some 

1  The  Berlin  Museum  and  Columbia  College  have  secured  a  large  proportion  of 
these  through  purchase.     The  remainder  are  still  in  the  market. 

2  The  longer  names  consist  of  three  elements  :  subject,  verb,  and  object.  The 
deity  is  generally  the  subject;  e.g.,  Sinacherib  =  Sin-akhe-irba,  i.e.,  may  the  god  Sin 
increase  the  brothers.  But  there  are  many  variations.  So  the  imperative  of  the 
verb  is  often  used,  and  in  that  case,  the  deity  is  in  the  vocative  case.  Instead  of  three 
elements,  there  are  frequently  only  two,  a  deity  and  a  participle  or  an  adjective ;  e.g., 


166  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

additions  to  the  pantheon  of  Babylonia.  Naturally,  a  dis- 
tinction is  to  be  made  between  deities  introduced  in  temple 
lists  and  in  the  course  of  legal  proceedings,  and  such  as  are 
merely  known  through  forming  an  element  in  proper  names. 
The  former  constitute  a  part  of  what  might  be  called  the 
'  active  '  pantheon  of  the  time.  Deities  that  are  actually  invoked 
by  contracting  parties  for  whatever  purpose  are  such  as  are 
endowed  with  real  significance  ;  and  if  any  of  these  are  not 
mentioned  in  the  historical  texts  proper,  the  omission  is  due  to 
the  lack  of  material.  The  testimony  of  the  legal  documents  in 
this  respect  is  fully  as  valid  as  is  that  of  the  historical  texts. 
In  proper  names  the  case  is  different.  Custom  being  a  promi- 
nent, if  not  a  controlling,  factor  in  the  giving  of  names,  it  nun- 
happen  that  the  deity  appearing  as  an  element  in  a  name  is  one 
who,  for  various  reasons,  is  no  longer  worshipped,  or  whose 
worship  has  diminished  in  significance  at  the  time  we  meet 
with  the  name.  Again,  deities  of  very  restricted  local  fame, 
deities  that  occupy  the  inferior  rank  of  mere  spirits  or  demons 
in  the  theological  system  of  the  Babylonians,  may  still  be  incor- 
porated in  proper  names.  Lastly,  in  view  of  the  descriptive 
epithets  by  which  some  deities  are  often  known,  as  much  as  by 
their  real  names,  it  frequently  happens  in  the  case  of  proper 
names  that  a  deity  otherwise  known  is  designated  by  one  of 
his  attributes.  Thus  we  find  in  legal  documents  of  the  second 
period  a  goddess,  Da-mu-gal,  who  is  none  other  than  the  well- 
known  Gula,  the  great  healing  deity;  Ud-zal,  who  is  identical 
with  Ninib,  and  so  written  as  the  god  of  'the  rising  sun'  j1  and 
Mar-tu  (lit.,  'the  west  god'),  which  is  a  designation  of  Ramman.2 

Sin-magir,  i.e.,  Sin  is  favorable,  or  a  person  is  called  '  the  son '  or  '  the  servant '  of 
a  god.  The  name  of  the  deity  alone  may  also  constitute  a  proper  name;  and  many 
names  of  course  do  not  contain  the  mention  of  a  deity  at  all,  though  such  names  are 
often  abbreviations  from  longer  ones  in  which  some  god  was  introduced. 

1  Jensen.  Kosmologie,  p.  458. 

-Arnold.  Ancient  Babylonian  Temple  Records,  p.  ;.  is  of  the  opinion  that  Id-nik- 
mar-tu  is  also  a  designation  of  Ramman.  His  view  is  plausible,  but  it  still  remains  to 
be  proved. 


THE    GODS  IN   THE    TEMPLE   LISTS.  167 

Bearing  in  mind  all  these  considerations,  we  find  in  the 
tablets  of  the  first  period,  so  far  as  published,1  the  same 
deities  that  are  met  with  in  the  historical  inscriptions  :  En-lil, 
Bau,  En-zu  (or  Sin),  Nin-girsu,  Nin-gish-zida,  Nin-mar,  Nana, 
Nina,  Shul-pa-uddu,  and  others.  No  doubt  a  complete  publica- 
tion of  the  Telloh  archives  will  furnish  some  —  not  many — new 
deities  not  occurring  in  the  historical  texts  of  this  period.  A 
rather  curious  feature,  illustrated  by  these  temple  archives,  and 
one  upon  which  we  shall  have  occasion  to  dwell,  is  the  divine 
honors  that  appear  to  have  been  paid  towards  the  end  of  the  first 
period  of  Babylonian  history  to  some  of  the  earlier  rulers,  notably 
Gudea  and  Dungi.2  Alongside  of  wine,  oil,  wheat,  sheep,  etc., 
offered  to  Bau,  Nin-gish-zida,  and  Shul-pa-uddu,  the  great  kings 
and  patesis  of  the  past  are  honored.  More  than  this,  sanctuaries 
sacred  to  these  rulers  are  erected,  and  in  other  respects  they  are 
placed  on  a  footing  of  equality  with  the  great  gods  of  the  period. 
Passing  on  to  the  lists  and  the  legal  documents  of  the  second 
period,3  we  may  note  that  the  gods  in  whose  name  the  oath  is 
taken  are  chiefly  Marduk,  Shamash,4  A,  Ramman,  and  Sin.  Gen- 
erally two  or  three  are  mentioned,  and  often  the  name  of  the 
reigning  king  is  added  to  lend  further  solemnity  to  the  oath. 
Other  gods  directly  introduced  are  Nana,  Ishtar,  Nebo,  Tash- 
mitum,  and  Sarpanitum,  after  whom  the  years  are  at  times 
designated,  probably  in  consequence  of  some  special  honors 
accorded  to  the  gods.  The  standing  phrase  is  '  the  year  of  the 
throne,'  or  simply  'the  year'  of  such  and  such  a  deity.     Nin-mar 

1  Scheil,  "  Le  Culte  de  Gudea  sous  le  IIe  Dynastie  d'Ur  "  {Recueil  des  Travaux.etc. 
xviii.  64-74).  W.  R.  Arnold,  Ancient  Babylonian  Temple  Records  (New  York,  1S96). 
The  Telloh  tablets  appear  to  be  largely  lists  of  offerings  made  to  the  temples  at 
Lagash.     More  extensive  publications  may  soon  be  looked  for. 

2  See  besides  Scheil's  article  (above),  Lehmann's  note,  Zeits.fiir  Assyr.  x.  3S1. 

3  Our  knowledge  of  the  documents  of  this  period  is  due  chiefly  to  Strassmaier  and 
Meissner. 

4  At  times  under  rather  curious  forms,  e.g.,  Shush-sha  ;  Strassmaier,  Warka,  no.  30, 
1.  21.  The  form  Sha-ash-sha  also  occurs  in  nos.  43  and  105  (cf.  Meissner's  note, 
Beitr'dge  zi/m  Altbabylonischen  Privatrecht,  p.  156). 


16S  HABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

appears  in  the  clays  of  Hammurabi  as  the  daughter  of  Marduk. 
Among  gods  appearing  for  the  first  time  are  Khusha,1  Nun-gal, 
and  Zamama.  Mentioned  in  connection  with  the  gates  of  the 
temple  where  the  judges  held  court,  the  association  of  Khusha 
with  Marduk,  Shamash,  Sin,  and  Nin-mar  points  to  a  consider- 
able degree  of  prominence  enjoyed  by  this  deity.  Of  his  nature 
and  origin,  however,  we  know  nothing.  Nun-gal  signifies  the 
'great  chief.'  His  temple  stood  in  Sippar,-  and  from  this  we 
may  conclude  that  he  was  one  of  the  minor  gods  of  the  place 
whose  original  significance  becomes  obscured  by  the  side  of 
the  all-powerful  patron  of  Sippar  —  the  sun-god.  A  syllabary 
describes  the  god  as  a  '  raging '  deity,  a  description  that  sug- 
gests solar  functions.  Nun-gal  appears,  therefore,  to  be  the 
ideograph  proper  to  a  deity  that  symbolized,  like  Nergal,  Ninib, 
and  A,  some  phase  of  the  sun.  The  disappearance  of  the 
god  would  thus  be  naturally  accounted  for,  in  view  of  the  tend- 
ency that  we  have  found  characteristic  of  the  religion,  whereby 
powerful  gods  absorb  the  functions  of  weaker  ones  whose 
attributes  resemble  their  own.  But  while  the  god  disappears, 
the  name  survives.  Nun-gal  with  the  plural  sign  attached 
becomes  a  collective  designation  for  a  group  of  powerful 
demons.3  In  this  survival  and  use  of  the  name  we  have  an 
interesting  example  of  the  manner  in  which,  by  a  species  of  dif- 
ferentiation, local  gods,  unable  to  maintain  themselves  by  the 
side  of  more  powerful  rivals,  sink  to  the  lower  grade  of  demons, 
either  beneficent  or  noxious.  In  this  grade,  too,  distinctions 
are  made,  as  will  be  pointed  out  at  the  proper  place.  There  is 
a  'pantheon'  of  demons  as  well  as  of  gods  in  the  Babylonian 
theology.  Nun-gal  accordingly  recovers  some  of  his  lost  dig- 
nity by  becoming  an  exceptionally  powerful  demon  —  so  power- 
ful as  to  confer  his  name  upon  an  entire  class.  The  god  Zamama 
appears  in  connection  with  a  date  attached  to  a  legal  document 

i  Meissner,  no.  42.     Also  in  a  proper  name,  Khusha-ilu,  ?.<•., '  Khusha  is  god.' 
2  Meissner,  nos.  40  and  1 1S.  :l  See  chapter  xi. 


THE    GODS  IN   THE    TEMPLE   LISTS.  169 

of  the  days  of  Hammurabi.  The  building  of  a  sanctuary  in 
honor  of  this  deity  and  his  consort  was  of  sufficient  importance 
to  make  the  year  known  by  this  event.  Zamama  is  occasionally 
mentioned  in  the  religious  hymns.  He  belongs  to  the  deities 
that  form  a  kind  of  court  around  Marduk.  From  syllabaries, 
we  learn  that  he  was  a  form  of  the  sun-god,  worshipped  in  the 
city  of  Kish  in  northern  Babylonia,  and  it  also  appears  that  he 
was  identified  at  one  period  with  Ninib.  The  temple  to  Zamama 
—  perhaps  only  a  shrine — stood  in  the  city  of  Kish,  which  was 
remodeled  by  Hammurabi.  The  shrine,  or  temple,  bore  the 
significant  name  'house  of  the  warrior's  glory.'  The  warrior  is 
of  course  the  god,  and  the  name  accordingly  shows  clearly  the 
character  of  the  god  in  whose  honor  the  sanctuary  was  built. 
Elsewhere,  he  is  explicitly  called  a  'god  of  battle.'  Associa- 
ted with  Zamama  of  Kish  was  his  consort,  who,  however,  is 
merely  termed  again  in  a  general  way,  'Ninni,'  i.e.,  'the  lady.' 
In  the  case  of  such  a  deity  as  Zamama,  it  is  evident  that  the 
absence  of  the  name  in  historical  texts  is  accidental,  and  that 
we  may  expect  to  come  across  it  with  the  increase  of  historical 
material.  In  the  proper  names,  all  of  the  prominent  deities 
discussed  in  this  and  the  previous  chapters  are  found,  though 
with  some  notable  exceptions.  Anu,  e.g.,  is  not  met  with  as  an 
element  in  proper  names,  but  among  those  occurring  may  be 
mentioned  Shamash,  A,  Ishtar,  Ramman  (also  under  the  forms 
Im-me-ru  and  Mar-tu),  Marduk,  sometimes  called  Sag-ila  after 
his  temple  in  Babylon,  Nabu,  Ishum,  Shala,  Bau,  Nin-ib,  Nin- 
gir-su,  Sin,  Bunene,  Annuit,  and  Ea.  Among  gods  appearing 
for  the  first  time  in  connection  with  the  names,  it  is  sufficient 
to  record  a  goddess  Shubula,  who  from  other  sources1  we  know 
was  the  local  patron  of  the  city  Shumdula,  a  goddess  Bashtum,2 
a  goddess   Mamu  (a  form  of  Gula),  Am-na-na,  Lugal-ki-mu-na, 

1IIR.  60,  18a  Pinches  {Journal  Victoria  Institute,  xxviii.  36,  reads  Shu-gid-la ; 
Hommel,  ib.  36,  Shu-sil-la). 

2  For  this  deity,  see  a  paper  by  the  writer,  "  The  Element  Boshcth  in  Hebrew  Proper 
Names,"  in  the  Journal  of  Bibl.  Liter,  xiii.  20-30. 


1 70  BA  A'  i  'L  ONI  A  N-ASS  YRIAN  RELIGION. 

E-la-li  (perhaps  an  epithet  for  the  fire-god  Gibil),  Ul-mash-shi- 
tum,  and  a  serpent  god  Sir.  Most  of  these  may  be  safely 
put  down  as  of  purely  local  origin  and  jurisdiction,  and  it  is 
hardly  likely  that  any  of  them  embody  an  idea  not  already 
covered  by  those  which  we  have  discussed.  From  the  lists  of 
gods  prepared  by  the  Babylonian  scholars,  it  is  clear  that  the 
number  of  local  deities  whose  names  at  least  survived  to  a  late 
period  was  exceedingly  large,  ranging  in  the  thousands;  and 
since,  as  seems  likely,  these  lists  were  prepared  (as  so  much  of 
the  lexicographical  literature)  on  the  basis  of  the  temple  lists 
and  of  the  commercial  and  legal  documents,  we  may  conclude 
that  all,  or  at  any  rate  most,  of  these  deities  were  in  use  as 
elements  in  proper  names,  without,  however,  having  much 
importance  beyond  this  incorporation. 


CHAPTER   X. 
THE   MINOR   GODS   IN   THE   PERIOD   OF   HAMMURABI. 

Coming  back  now  to  the  historical  texts  and  placing  the 
minor  deities  together  that  occur  in  the  inscriptions  of  Ham- 
murabi and  his  successors  down  through  the  restoration  of 
native  rulers  on  the  throne  of  Babylonia,  we  obtain  the  follow- 
ing list:  Zakar,  Lugal-mit-tu  (?),  Nin-dim-su,  Ba-kad,  Pap-u, 
Belit-ekalli,  Shumalia,  Shukamuna,  Gula,  Shir,  Shubu,  Belit  of 
Akkad,  Malik,  Bunene,  Nin-igi-nangar-bu,  Gushgin-banda,  Nin- 
kurra,  Nin-zadim.  In  view  of  the  limited  amount  of  historical 
material  at  our  disposal  for  the  second  period  of  Babylonian 
history,  the  list  of  course  does  not  permit  us  to  form  a  definite 
notion  of  the  total  number  of  minor  gods  that  were  still  occa- 
sionally invoked  by  the  side  of  the  great  gods.  By  comparison, 
however,  with  the  pantheon  so  far  as  ascertained  of  the  first 
period,  the  conclusion  is  justified  that  with  the  system atization 
of  cults  and  beliefs  characteristic  of  the  Hammurabi,  a  marked 
tendency  appears  towards  a  reduction  of  the  pantheon,  a  weed- 
ing out  of  the  numerous  local  cults,  their  absorption  by  the 
larger  ones,  and  the  relegation  of  the  minor  gods  of  only  local 
significance  to  a  place  among  the  spirits  and  demons  of  the 
Babylonian  religion.  Brief  statements  of  these  minor  gods 
will  suffice  to  indicate  their  general  character.  Of  most  of 
the  gods  in-this  list  there  is  but  little  we  know  as  yet  beyond 
the  name.  Some  of  them  will  occur  again  in  the  Assyrian 
and  Neo-Babylonian  historical  texts,  others  in  the  hymns 
and  incantations;  some  are  only  found  in  the  period  we  are 
considering,  though  with  the  material  constantly  increasing 
we  must  beware  of  drawing  any  conclusions  from  the  fact  of  a 


172  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

single  mention.  'Zakar,'  signifying,  probably, '  heroic,'  appears 
to  have  been  worshipped  in  Nippur,  where  a  wall  known  as  the 
'wall  of  Zakar'  was  built  by  Samsu-iluna.  From  the  fact  that 
this  wall  was  sacred  to  Nin-khar-sag  or  Belit,  we  may,  perhaps, 
be  permitted  to  conclude  that  '  Zakar '  stood  in  close  relation- 
ship to  Bel  and  Belit  of  Nippur,  --  possibly  a  son,  — or,  at  all 
events,  belonged  to  the  inner  circle  of  deities  worshipped  in 
the  old  city  sacred  to  the  great  Bel. 

Another  wall  in  Nippur  was  dedicated  by  this  Samsu-iluna 
to  a  god  whose  name  is  provisionally  read  by  Winckler,  Lugal- 
mit-tu.1  Lugal,  signifying  '  king,'  is  an  element  that  enters  as 
an  ideograph  in  the  composition  of  the  names  of  several  deities. 
Thus  we  have  Lugal-edinna,  '  king  of  the  field,'  which  is  the 
equivalent  of  Nergal,  and  again  for  the  same  god,  the  combina- 
tion Lugal-gira,  which  is,  as  Jensen-  has  shown,  'raging  king,' 
and  a  title  of  Nergal  in  his  character  as  the  god  of  pestilence 
and  war.  Nin-dim-su,  Ba-kad,  Pap-u,  Belit-ekalli,  Shumalia,  and 
Shukamuna  occur  at  the  close  of  the  inscription  of  Melishikhu, 
among  the  gods  asked  to  curse  the  transgressors  of  the  royal 
decree.3  That  some  of  these  are  Cassite  deities  imported  into 
Babylonia,  and  whose  position  in  the  pantheon  was  therefore  of 
a  temporary  character,  there  seems  little  reason  to  question.  Ba- 
kad  may,  and  Shumalia  quite  certainly  does,  belong  to  this  class. 
As  for  Shukamuna,  the  fact  that  Agumkakrimi,  who  places  his 
title,  'king  of  Cassite  land,'  before  that  of  Akkad  and  Babylon, 
opens  his  inscription  with  the  declaration  that  he  is  the  glorious 
offspring  of  Shukamuna,  fixes  the  character  of  this  god  beyond 
all  doubt  ;  and  Delitzsch  lias  shown  4  that  this  god  was  regarded 
by  the  Babylonian  schoolmen  as  the  equivalent  of  their  own 
Nergal.       Shukamuna.    accordingly,    was    the    Cassite    god    of 

1  The  text    is  defective  at  the  point  where  the  god's  name  is  mentioned.     See 
K,  Hi  Hi!'!.  3,  i.  p.  133. 
-  Kosmologie,  pp.  ^  S 1  seq. 
8  Belser,  Beitr'dge  zur  Assy  ■  ii.  203.  col.  vi. 
■'  Kossaer,  pp.  .^-27. 


MINOR    GODS  IN   THE   PERIOD    OF  HAMMURABI.     173 

war,  who,  like  Nergal,  symbolized  the  mid-day  sun, — that  is, 
the  raging  and  destructive  power.  Shumalia  is  the  consort  of 
Shukamuna,1  and  is  invoked  as  the  '  lady  of  the  shining  moun- 
tains.' Nin-dim-su  is  a  title  of  Ea,  as  the  patron  of  arts. 
Belit-ekalli — i.e.,  Belit  of  the  palace  —  appears  as  the  consort 
of  Ninib,  the  epithet  '  ekalli '  being  added  to  specify  what  Belit 
is  meant,  and  to  avoid  confusion  with  the  consort  of  Bel.  At 
the  same  time  it  must  be  confessed  that  the  precise  force  of 
the  qualification  of  '  Belit  of  the  palace'  (or  temple)  escapes  us. 
Ninib's  consort,  as  we  know  from  other  sources,  was  Gula.2 
This  name  is  in  some  way  connected  with  an  Assyrian  stem 
signifying  'great,'  and  it  is  at  least  worthy  of  note  that  the 
word  for  palace  is  written  by  a  species  of  punning  etymology 
with  two  signs,  e  =  house  and  gallu  =  large.  The  question 
suggests  itself  whether  the  title  '  Belit-ekalli '  may  not  have  its 
rise  in  a  further  desire  to  play  upon  the  goddess's  name,  just  as 
her  title  Kallat-Eshara  (bride  of  Eshara,  or  earth)  rests  upon 
such  a  play.  Such  plays  on  names  are  characteristic  of  the 
Semites,  and  indeed  in  a  measure  are  common  to  all  ancient 
nations,  to  whom  the  name  always  meant  much  more  than  to 
us.  Every  nomen,  as  constituting  the  essence  of  an  object,  was 
always  and  above  all  an  omen.  It  is,  therefore,  plausible  to 
suppose  that  titles  of  the  gods  should  have  been  chosen  in  part 
under  the  influence  of  this  idea."  A  further  suggestion  that 
I  would  like  to  offer  is  that  'ekallu,'  as  temple  or  palace  (lit, 
large  house),  may  be  one  of  the  numerous  names  of  the  nether 
world.  A  parallel  would  be  furnished  by  Ekur,  which  signifies 
both  '  temple  '  and  '  earth,'  4  and  is  also  one  of  the  names  of  the 
gathering-place  of  the  dead.     Gula,  being  the  goddess  of  the 

1  Delitzsch,  Kossaer,  p.  33. 

2  See  above,  p.  105. 

3  Examples  of  punning  etymologies  on  names  of  gods  are  frequent.  See  Jensen's 
discussion  of  Nergal  for  examples  of  various  plays  upon  the  name  of  the  god. 
Kosmologie,  pp.  1S5  scq. 

4  Jensen,  Kosmologie,  pp.  1S5  seq.  and  p.  218. 


174  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

nether  world  who  restores  the  dead  to  life,  would  be  appropri- 
ately called  '  the  lady  of  the  nether  world.'  One  should  like  to 
know  more  of  Pap-u  (the  phonetic  reading  unknown),  who  is 
called  the  offspring  of  Eshara,  and  '  the  lord  of  the  boundary.' 
Eshara,  as  Jensen  has  shown,1  is  a  poetical  name  for  earth. 
The  god  Ninib,  in  his  capacity  as  a  god  of  agriculture,  is  called 
the  '  product  of  Eshara.'  -  Pap-u,  therefore,  must  be  a  god  some- 
what of  the  same  character  —  a  conclusion  which  is  borne  out 
by  the  description  given  of  him  as  the  protector  of  the  bound- 
ary. He  is  probably  one  of  the  numerous  forms  of  boundary 
gods  that  are  met  with  among  all  nations.  That  we  do  not 
encounter  more  in  Babylonia  is  due  to  the  decided  tendency 
that  has  been  noted  towards  a  centralization  of  power  in  a 
limited  number  of  deities.  Instead  of  gods  of  boundaries,  we 
have  numerous  demons  and  spirits  in  the  case  of  the  developed 
Babylonian  religion,  into  whose  hands  the  care  of  preserving 
the  rights  of  owners  to  their  lands  is  entrusted.  Symbols  of 
these  spirits  —  serpents,  unicorns,  scorpions,  and  the  like  — 
are  added  on  the  monuments  which  were  placed  at  the  bound- 
aries, and  on  which  the  terms  were  specified  that  justified 
the  land  tenure.  To  this  class  of  monuments  the  name  of 
'  Kudurru,'  or  '  boundary  '  stones,  was  given  by  the  Babylonians 
themselves.  The  inscription  on  which  the  name  of  Pap-u 
occurs  belongs  to  this  class  ;  and  he  is  invoked,  as  already  said, 
along  with  many  other  gods- — in  fact,  with  the  whole  or  a 
goodly  portion  of  the  pantheon.  It  would  seem,  therefore, 
that  we  have  in  Pap-u  a  special  boundary  god  who  has  survived 
in  that  role  from  a  more  primitive  period  of  Babylonian  culture. 
He  occupies  a  place  usually  assigned  to  the  powerful  demons 
who  are  regarded  as  the  real  owners  of  the  soil.3 

1  Kosmologie,  p.  195.  -  Rawlinson,  i.  29,  16. 

3  This  notion  that  the  ground  belongs  to  the  gods,  and  that  man  is  only  a  tenant, 
survives  to  a  late  period  in  Semitic  religions.  The  belief  underlies  the  Pentateuchal 
enactments  regarding  the  holding  of  the  soil,  which  is  only  to  he  temporary.  See 
W.  k.  Smith,  Religion  of  the  Semites,  pp.  91  seq. 


MINOR    GODS  IN    THE    PERIOD    OE  HAMMURABI.     175 

Perhaps  the  most  interesting  of  the  minor  deities  during  this 
second  period  is 

Gula. 

As  has  just  been  stated,  she  is  the  consort  of  Ninib.     She 
is  not  mentioned  in  any  of  the  inscriptions  of  this  period  till 
we  come  to  the  days  of  Nebuchadnezzar  I.,  who  invokes  her 
as   the  bride  of   Eshara,  —  i.e.,  of  the  earth.1     We  also  meet 
with   her  name  in  that  of    several   individuals,   Balatsu-Gula 2 
and  Arad-Gula,3  and  we  have  seen  that  she  is  also  known  as 
Bafnu  and  Mamu,  or  Meme.     We  have  a  proof,  therefore,  of 
her  cult  being  firmly  established  at  an  early  period  of  Baby- 
lonian history.     Her  role  is  that  of  a  '  life-giver,'  in  the  widest 
sense  of  the  word.     She  is  called  the  '  great  physician,'  who 
both  preserves  the  body  in  health  and  who  removes  sickness 
and  disease  by  the  'touch  of  her  hand.'     Gula  is  the  one  who 
leads  the  dead  to  a  new  life.     She  shares  this  power,  however, 
with  her  husband  Ninib.      Her  power  can  be  exerted  for  evil 
as  well  as  for  good.     She  is  appealed  to,  to  strike  the  enemy 
with  blindness ;  she  can  bring  on  the  very  diseases  that  she  is 
able  to  heal,  and  such  is  the  stress  laid   upon  these  qualities 
that  she  is  even  addressed  as  the  '  creator  of  mankind.'     But 
although  it  is  the  '  second '  birth  of  mankind  over  which  she 
presides,    she  does    not  belong  to  the  class  of  deities  whose 
concern  is  with  the   dead  rather  than  the  living.     The  Baby- 
lonians, as  we  shall  have  occasion  to  point  out,  early  engaged 
in  speculations  regarding  the  life  after  death,  and,  as  a  result, 
there  was  developed  a  special  pantheon  for  the  nether  world. 
Gula  occupies  a  rather  unique  place  intermediate,  as  it  were, 
between  the  gods  of  the  living  and  the  gods  of  the  dead. 

1  In  Babylonian,  Kallat  Eshara,  with  another  play  upon  her  name.     See  above, 

P-  173- 

2  I.e.,  [Protect]  his  life,  O  Gula. 

3  Servant  of  Gula. 


L76  BABYLONIAA    ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

Of  the  other  deities  occurring  in  the  inscription  of  this  same 
Nebuchadnezzar  I.  it  is  sufficient  to  note  that  two,  Shir  and 
Shubu,  are  enumerated  among  the  gods  of  Bit-Khabban.  They 
were,  therefore,  local  deities  of  some  towns  that  never  rose  to 
sufficient  importance  to  insure  their  patrons  a  permanent  place 
in  the  Babylonian  pantheon.  '  Edit  of  Akkad,'  whom  Nebu- 
chadnezzar invokes,  is  none  other  than  the  great  Belit,  the  con- 
sort of  Bel.  'Akkad'  is  here  used  for  Babylonia,  and  the 
qualification  is  added  to  distinguish  her  from  other  '  ladies,' 
as,  e.g.,  '  Belit-ekalli,'  who,  we  have  seen,  was  Gula. 


Malik  and  Bunene. 

Upon  reaching  so  late  a  period  as  the  days  of  Nabubaliddin 
(c.  850  B.C.),  it  becomes  doubtful  whether  we  are  justified  in 
including  the  additional  deities  occurring  in  his  inscription 
among  the  Babylonian  pantheon  of  the  second  period.  The 
occurrence  of  some  of  these  gods  in  the  religious  literature  is 
a  presumption  in  favor  of  regarding  them  as  ancient  creations, 
rather  than  clue  to  later  influences.  Certainly  this  appears  to 
be  the  case  with  Malik  and  Bunene,  who,  with  Shamash,  form 
a  triad  that  constitutes  the  chief  object  of  worship  in  the  great 
temple  E-babbara  at  Sippar,  to  whose  restored  cult  Nabu-bal- 
iddin  devotes  himself.  Both  names,  moreover,  occur  as  parts 
of  proper  names  in  the  age  of  Hammurabi.  Malik  —  i.e.,  ruler 
—  is  one  of  the  names  frequently  assigned  to  Shamash,  just  as 
the  god's  consort  was  known  as  Malkatu,  but  for  all  that  Malik 
is  not  the  same  as  Shamash.  Accompanying  the  inscription  of 
Nabubaliddin  is  a  design  l  representing  the  sun-god  seated  in 
his  shrine.  Before  him  on  a  table  rests  a  wheel,  and  attached 
to  the  wheel  are  cords  held  by  two  figures,  who  are  evidently 
directing  the  course  of  the  wheel.      These  two  figures  are  Malik 

• 

1  See  VK.  pi.  60. 


MINOR    GODS  IN    THE   PERIOD    OE  HAMMURABI.     177 

and  Bunene,  a  species  of  attendants,  therefore,  on  the  sun-god, 
who  drive  the  fiery  chariot  that  symbolized  the  great  orb. 
Bunene,  through  association  with  Malik,  becomes  the  latter's 
consort,  and  it  is  interesting  to  observe  the  extent  to  which  the 
tendency  of  the  Babylonian  religion  to  conceive  the  gods  in 
pairs  goes.  Bunene  is  not  the  only  instance  of  an  originally 
male  deity  becoming  through  various  circumstances  the  female 
consort  to  another.  Originally,  Malik  may  have  been  a  name 
under  which  the  sun-god  was  worshipped  at  some  place,  for 
the  conception  that  makes  him  the  chariot-driver  to  Shamash 
appears  to  be  late.  The  absorption  by  the  greater  sun-cults 
(at  Sippar  and  Larsa  more  particularly)  of  the  lesser  ones  leads 
to  the  complete  transfer  of  the  names  of  minor  sun-deities  to 
the  great  Shamash,  but  in  some  instances  the  minor  deities 
continue  to  lead  a  shadowy  existence  in  some  role  of  service  to 
the  greater  ones. 


NlN-IGI-NANGAR-BU,     GUSHGIN-BANDA,     NlN-KURRA,     AND     NlN- 

ZADIM. 

We  have  seen  that  Ea,  among  other  powers  assigned  to  him, 
was  regarded  as  the  god  of  fine  arts,  —  in  the  first  instance  as 
the  god  of  the  smithy,  because  of  the  antiquity  and  importance 
of  the  smith's  art,  and  then  of  art  in  general,  including 
especially  the  production  of  great  statues.  In  accordance  with 
this  conception,  Nabubaliddin  declares  that  it  was  through  the 
wisdom  of  Ea  that  he  succeeded  in  manufacturing  the  great 
image  of  Shamash  that  was  set  up  by  him  in  the  temple  at 
Sippar.  But  in  the  days  of  Nabubaliddin  the  arts  had  been 
differentiated  into  various  branches,  and  this  differentiation 
was  expressed  by  assigning  to  each  branch  some  patron  god 
who  presided  over  that  section.  In  this  way,  the  old  belief 
that  art  comes  to  men  from  the  gods  survived,  while   at  the 


17S  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

same  time  it  entered  upon  new  phases.1  Accordingly,  Nabu- 
baliddin  assigns  several  deities  who  act  the  part  of  assistants 
to  Ea.  The  names  of  these  deities  point  to  their  functions. 
Nin-igi-nangar-bu  is  the  '  lord  who  presides  over  metal-workers'; 
Gushgin-banda,  '  brilliant  chief,'  is  evidently  the  patron  of  those 
skilled  in  the  working  of  the  bright  metals ;  Nin-kurra,  '  lord 
of  mountain,'  the  patron  of  those  that  quarried  the  stones  ; 
while  Nin-zadim  is  the  patron  of  sculpture.  Ea  stands  above 
these  as  a  general  overseer,  but  the  four  classes  of  laborers 
symbolized  by  gods  indicate  the  manner  of  artistic  construction 
in  the  advanced  state  of  Babylonian  art,  and  of  the  various 
distinct  professions  to  which  this  art  gave  birth.  In  a  certain 
sense,  of  course,  these  four  gods  associated  with  Ea  belong  to 
the  Babylonian  pantheon,  but  not  in  the  same  sense  in  which 
Ea,  for  example,  or  the  other  gods  discussed  in  this  chapter, 
belong  to  it.  They  cannot  even  be  said  to  be  gods  of  a  minor 
order — they  are  hardly  anything  more  than  personifications  of 
certain  phenomena  that  have  their  source  in  the  human  intel- 
lect. In  giving  to  these  personified  powers  the  determinative 
indicative  of  deity,  the  Babylonian  schoolmen  were  not  conscious 
of  expressing  anything  more  than  their  belief  in  the  divine 
origin  of  the  power  and  skill  exercised  by  man.  To  represent 
such  power  as  a  god  was  the  only  way  in  which  the  personifi- 
cation could  at  all  be  effected  under  the  conditions  presented 
by  Babylonian  beliefs.  When,  therefore,  we  meet  with  such 
gods  as  Nin-zadim,  'lord  of  sculpture,'  it  is  much  the  same  as 
when  in  the  Old  Testament  we  are  told  that  Tubal-cain  was 
the  'father'  of  those  that  work  in  metals,  and  where  similarly 
other  arts  are  traced  back  to  a  single  source.  '  Eather '  in 
Oriental  hyperbole  signifies  'source,  originator,  possessor,  or 
patron,'  and,  indeed,  includes  all  these  ideas.  The  Hebrew 
writer,  rising  to  a  higher  level  of  belief,  conceives  the  arts  to 

1  To  this  day  in  the  Orient,  fine  productions  of  man's  skill  are  attributed  to  the 
influence  of  hidden  spirits,  good  or  bad,  as  the  case  may  be. 


MINOR    GODS   IN    THE   PERIOD    OF  HAMMURABI.     179 

have  originated  through  some  single  personage  endowed  with 
divine  powers  ; x  the  Babylonian,  incapable  as  yet  of  making 
this  distinction,  ascribes  both  the  origin  and  execution  of  the 
art  directly  to  a  god.  In  this  way,  new  deities  were  apparently 
created  even  at  an  advanced  stage  of  the  Babylonian  religion, 
but  deities  that  differed  totally  from  those  that  are  character- 
istic of  the  earlier  periods.  The  differentiation  of  the  arts, 
and  the  assignment  of  a  patron  to  each  branch,  reflect  the 
thoughts  and  the  aspirations  of  a  later  age.  These  views 
must  have  arisen  under  an  impulse  to  artistic  creation  that  was 
called  forth  by  unusual  circumstances,  and  I  venture  to  think 
that  this  impulse  is  to  be  traced  to  the  influence  of  the  Assyrian 
rulers,  whose  greatest  ambition,  next  to  military  glory,  was  to 
leave  behind  them  artistic  monuments  of  themselves  that  mi°:ht 
unfold  to  later  ages  a  tale  of  greatness  and  of  power.  Sculp- 
ture and  works  in  metal  were  two  arts  that  flourished  in  a 
special  degree  in  the  days  when  Assyria  was  approaching  the 
zenith  of  her  glory.  Nabubaliddin's  reign  falls  within  this 
period ;  and  we  must,  therefore,  look  from  this  time  on  for 
traces  of  Assyrian  influence  in  the  culture,  the  art,  and  also 
to  some  extent  in  the  religious  beliefs  of  the  southern  district 
of  Mesopotamia. 

1  This  position  does  not,  of  course,  exclude  the  fact  that  in  the  original  form  of 
the  tradition,  Tubal-cain,  Naamah,  and  other  personages  in  the  fourth  chapter  of 
Genesis  were  deities. 


CHAPTER    XI. 
SURVIVALS    OF   ANIMISM   IN   THE   BABYLONIAN   RELIGION. 

The  Assyrian  influence  however  was  only  one  factor,  and  a 
minor  factor  at  that,  in  maintaining  the  belief  in  countless 
spirits  that  occupied  a  place  of  more  or  less  importance  by 
the  side  of  the  great  and  lesser  gods.  That  conservatism 
which  is  a  distinguishing  trait  of  the  popular  forms  of  religion 
everywhere,  served  to  keep  alive  the  view  that  all  the  acts 
of  man,  his  moods,  the  accidents  that  befell  him,  were  under 
the  control  of  visible  or  invisible  powers.  The  development 
of  a  pantheon,  graded  and  more  or  less  regulated  under 
the  guidance  of  the  Babylonian  schoolmen,  did  not  drive  the 
old  animistic  views  out  of  existence.  In  the  religious  litera- 
ture, and  more  especially  in  those  parts  of  it  which  reflect 
the  popular  forms  of  thought,  the  unorganized  mass  of  spirits 
maintain  an  undisputed  sway.  In  the  incantation  texts,  which 
will  be  discussed  at  length  in  a  subsequent  chapter,  as  well  as 
in  other  sections  of  Babylonian  literature  embodying  both  the 
primitive  and  the  advanced  views  of  the  Babylonians  regarding 
the  origin  of  the  universe,  its  subdivisions,  and  its  order  of 
development,  and,  thirdly,  in  the  legends  and  epics,  hundreds 
of  spirits  are  introduced,  to  which  some  definite  function  or  func- 
tions were  assigned.  In  many,  indeed  in  the  majority  of  cases, 
the  precise  character  of  these  functions  still  escapes  us.  The 
material  at  our  disposal  is  as  yet  inadequate  for  any  satisfactory 
treatment  of  this  phase  of  Babylonian  belief,  and  we  must  con- 
tent ourselves  for  the  present  with  some  generalizations,  or  at 
the  most  with  some  broad  classifications.  Besides  the  texts 
themselves,  we  have  proper  names  containing  a  spirit  as  an  ele- 
ment, and  also  lists  of  those  spirits  prepared  by  the  schoolmen 


ANIMISM  IN    THE   BABYLONIAN  RELIGION.  1S1 

on  the  basis  of  the  texts.  When,  as  sometimes  happens,  these 
lists  contain  explanatory  comments  on  the  spirits  enumerated, 
we  are  able  to  take  some  steps  forward  in  our  knowledge  of  the 
subject. 

In  the  first  place,  then,  it  is  important  to  bear  in  mind  that 
the  numerous  spirits,  when  introduced  into  the  religious  and 
other  texts,  are  almost  invariably  preceded  by  a  sign  —  techni- 
cally known  as  a  determinative  —  which  stamps  them  as  divine. 
This  sign  being  the  same  as  the  one  placed  before  the 
names  of  the  gods,  it  is  not  always  possible  to  distinguish 
between  deities  and  spirits.  The  use  of  a  common  sign  is 
significant  as  pointing  to  the  common  origin  of  the  two  classes 
of  superior  powers  that  thus  continue  to  exist  side  by  side.  A 
god  is  naught  but  a  spirit  writ  large.  As  already  intimated  in 
a  previous  chapter,  a  large  part  of  the  development  of  the  Baby- 
lonian region  consists  in  the  differentiation  between  the  gods 
and  the  spirits, — a  process  that,  beginning  before  the  period 
of  written  records,  steadily  went  on,  and  in  a  certain  sense  was 
never  completed.  In  the  historical  texts,  the  gods  alone,  with 
certain  exceptions,  find  official  recognition,  and  it  is  largely 
through  these  texts  that  we  are  enabled  to  distinguish  between 
the  two  classes  of  powers,  the  gods  and  the  spirits  ;  but  as  a 
survival  of  a  primitive  animism,  the  demons,  good,  bad,  and 
indifferent,  retain  their  place  in  the  popular  forms  of  religion. 
Several  hundred  spirits  occur  in  the  incantation  texts,  and  almost 
as  many  more  in  other  religious  texts.  We  may  distinguish  sev- 
eral classes.  In  the  first  place,  there  are  the  demons  that  cause 
disease  and  all  manner  of  physical  annoyances.  The  chief  of 
these  will  be  considered  when  we  come  to  the  analysis  of  the 
incantation  texts.  Against  these  demons  the  sufferer  seeks 
protection  by  means  of  formulas,  the  utterance  of  which  is 
invested  with  peculiar  power,  and  again  by  means  of  certain 
rites  of  an  expiatory  or  purificatory  character.  Next,  we  have 
the    demons    supposed    to    inhabit    the    fields,   and  to    whom 


1S2  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

the  ground  is  supposed  to  belong.  These  were  imaged  under 
various  animal  forms,  serpents  and  scorpions  being  the  favor- 
ite ones.  When  possession  was  taken  of  the  field,  the  spirits 
inhabiting  it  had  to  be  propitiated.  The  owner  placed  himself 
under  their  protection,  and  endeavored  to  insure  his  rights 
against  wrongful  encroachment  by  calling  upon  the  demons  to 
range  themselves  on  his  side.  It  was  customary,  especially  in 
the  case  of  territory  acquired  by  special  grant  of  the  monarch, 
or  under  extraordinary  circumstances,  to  set  up  a  so-called 
boundary  stone,1  on  which  the  owner  of  the  field  detailed  his 
right  to  possession,  through  purchase  or  gift,  as  the  case  may 
be.  This  inscription  closed  with  an  appeal  to  various  gods  to 
strike  with  their  curses  any  intruder  upon  the  owner's  rights. 
In  addition  to  this,  the  stones  are  embellished  with  serpents, 
scorpions,  unicorns,  and  various  realistic  or  fantastic  represen- 
tations of  animal  forms.  These,  it  would  seem,  symbolize  the 
spirits,  the  sight  of  which,  it  was  hoped,  might  act  as  a  further  and 
effectual  warning  against  interference  with  the  owner's  rights.2 

A  special  class  of  demons  is  formed  by  those  which  were 
supposed  to  infest  the  resting-places  of  the  dead,  though  they 
stand  in  a  certain  relationship  to  the  demons  that  plague  the 
living.      A  remarkable  monument  found  a  number  of  years  ago, 

1  The  technical  name  for  this  class  of  monuments  was  Kudurru.  i.e.,  mark,  and 
then  used  like  the  German  word  Mark  both  for  boundary  and  for  the  territorj 
included  within  the  bounds.  A  notable  contribution  to  the  interpretation  of  the 
Kudurru  monuments  was  made  by  Belser,  in  the  Beitrdge  zur  Assyriologie,  ii. 
1 1 1-203. 

-  The  question  has  been  raised  (see  Belser,  ib.  p.  m)  by  Pinches  whether  these 
representations  are  not  the  symbols  <>l  the  zodiac,  but,  as  Belser  justly  remarks,  the 
attempt  to  interpret  the  pictures  in  this  way  has  not  been  successful.  It  still 
seems  most  plausible  to  regard  the  pictures  as  symbols  of  spirits  or  demons.  Such 
an  interpretation  is  in  accord  with  the  Babylonian  and  general  Semitic  view  of  land 
ownership.  At  the  same  time,  it  must  lie  confessed  that  we  are  still  in  the  dark  as  to 
the  motives  underlying  the  choice  of  tin-  animals  portrayed.  There  may  be  some 
ultimate  connection  with  some  oi  the  signs  of  the  zodiac,  —  so  1  lommel  believes. —  but 
such  connection  would  have  to  be  judged  from  the  earlier  forms  that  animism  take> 
on,  and  not  in  the  light  of  an  advanced  theology  such  as  appears  in  the  zodiacal 
system  of  the  Babylonians. 


ANIMISM  IN    THE   BABYLONIAN  RELIGION.  183 

and  which  will  be  fully  described  in  a  subsequent  chapter, 
affords  us  a  picture  of  some  of  these  demons  whose  sphere  of 
action  is  more  particularly  in  the  subterranean  cave  that  forms 
the  gathering-place  of  the  dead.  They  are  represented  as  half 
human,  half  animal,  with  large  grotesque  and  terror-inspiring 
features.1  Their  power,  however,  is  limited.  They  are  subject 
to  the  orders  of  the  gods  whose  dominion  is  the  lower  world, 
more  particularly  to  Nergal  and  his  consort  Allatu.  In  the 
advanced  eschatology  of  the  Babylonians  the  demons  play  a 
minor  part.  It  is  with  the  gods  that  the  dead  man  must  make 
his  peace.  Their  protection  assured,  he  has  little  to  fear  ;  but 
the  demons  of  the  lower  world  frequently  ascend  to  the  upper 
regions  to  afflict  the  living.  Against  them  precautions  must  be 
taken  similar  to  the  means  employed  for  ridding  one's  self  of 
the  baneful  influence  of  the  disease-  and  pain-bringing  spirits. 
Reference  has  already  been  made  to  the  spirits  that  belong  to 
the  higher  phases  of  Mesopotamian  culture,  —  those  that  have 
a  share  in  the  production  of  works  of  skill  and  art.  We  have 
seen  that  in  accounting  for  these  we  are  justified  in  assuming  a 
higher  phase  of  religious  belief.  The  dividing  line  between  god 
and  spirit  becomes  faint,  and  the  numerous  protecting  patrons 
of  the  handicrafts  that  flourished  in  Babylonia  and  Assyria  can 
hardly  be  placed  in  the  same  category  with  those  we  have  so 
far  been  considering.  Still,  to  the  popular  mind  the  achieve- 
ments of  the  human  mind  were  regarded  as  due  to  the  workings 
of  hidden  forces.  Strange  as  it  may  seem,  there  was  an  indis- 
position to  ascribe  everything  to  the  power  of  the  gods.  Ea 
and  Nabu,  although  the  general  gods  of  wisdom,  did  not  con- 
cern themselves  with  details.  These  were  left  to  the  secondary 
powers,  —  the  spirits.  Hence  it  happens  that  by  the  side  of  the 
great  gods,  we  have  a  large  number  of  minor  powers  who  pre- 
side over  the  various  branches  of  human  handiwork  and  con- 
trol the  products  of  the  human  mind. 

1  See  Perrot  and  Chipiez,  History  of  Art  in  Chaldaea  and  Assyria,  i.  351. 


1S4  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

Reserving  further  details  regarding  the  several  classes  of 
demons  and  spirits  enumerated,  it  will  suffice  to  say  a  few 
words  about  one  particular  group  of  spirits  whose  role  was 
peculiarly  prominent  in  both  historical,  liturgical,  and  general 
religious  texts.  The  tendency  to  systematize  the  beliefs  in 
spirits  manifests  itself  in  Babylonia,  equally  with  the  grouping 
of  the  gods  into  certain  classes.  In  consequence  of  this  general 
tendency,  the  conception  arose  of  a  group  of  spirits  that  com- 
prised the  associated  secondary  powers  of  earth  and  heaven, 
somewhat  as  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea  summed  up  the  quintessence  of 
the  higher  powers  or  gods.     This  group  was  known  as  the 

Anunnaki  and   Igigi. 

Regarding  these  names  it  may  be  said  that  the  former  has 
not  yet  been  satisfactorily  interpreted.  On  the  assumption 
that  the  union  of  the  syllables  A-nun-na-ki1  represents  a  com- 
pound ideograph,  the  middle  syllable  ;/////  signifies  f  strength,' 
whereas  the  first  is  the  ordinary  ideograph  for  '  water.'  Hom- 
mel 2  proposed  to  interpret  the  name  therefore  as  '  gods  of  the 
watery  habitation.'  The  artificiality  of  this  manner  of  writing 
points,  as  in  several  instances  noted,  to  a  mere  '  play '  upon 
the  real  name.  Anunna  reminds  one  forcibly  of  the  god  .-Inn 
and  of  the  goddess  Anunit,  and  the  element  ak  is  quite  a 
common  afformative  in  Babylonian  substantives,  conveying  a 
certain  emphatic  meaning  to  the  word.  If  therefore  we  may 
compare  Anun  with  the  name  of  the  god  of  heaven,  the  name 
Anunndk  embodying,  as  it  does  in  this  case,  the  idea  of  power, 
would  be  an  appropriate  designation  for  the  spirits,  or  a  group 
of  spirits  collectively.  Be  it  understood  that  this  explanation 
is  offered  merely  as  a  conjecture,  which,  however,  finds  sup- 
port  in   the  meaning  attached   to   the   term   '  Igigi.'     This,   as 

1  The  clement  ki  is  sometimes  omitted.      The  force  oi  >:u  is  nut  clear,  unless  it  he 
a  phonetic  complement  merely. 
-  Semitischc  Volker,  p. 


ANIMISM  IN   THE   BABYLONIAN  RELIGION.  185 

Halevy  and  Guyard  have  recognized,  is  a  formation  of  a 
well-known  stem  occurring  in  Babylonian,  as  well  as  in  other 
Semitic  languages,  that  has  the  meaning  '  strong.'  The  ideo- 
graphic form  of  writing  the  name  likewise  designates  the  spirits 
as  '  the  great  chiefs.'  The  '  Igigi,'  therefore,  are  '  the  strong 
ones,'  and  strength  being  the  attribute  most  commonly  assigned 
to  the  Semitic  deities,1  there  is  a  presumption,  at  least,  in  favor 
of  interpreting  Anunnak,  or  Anunnaki,2  in  the  same  way.  The 
'Igigi'  are  at  times  designated  as  the  seven  gods,  but  this 
number  is  simply  an  indication  of  their  constituting  a  large 
group.  Seven  is  a  round  number  which  marked  a  large  quan- 
tity. At  an  earlier  period  five  represented  a  numerical  magni- 
tude, and  hence  the  Anunnaki  are  at  times  regarded  as  a  group 
of  five.a  The  Anunnaki  and  Igigi  appear  for  the  first  time 
in  an  historical  text  in  the  inscription  of  the  Assyrian  king 
Rammannirari  I.,  who  includes  them  in  his  appeal  to  the 
great  gods.  He  designates  the  Igigi  as  belonging  to  heaven, 
the  Anunnaki  as  belonging  to  the  earth.  The  manner  in 
which  he  uses  the  names  shows  conclusively  that,  at  this  early 
period,  the  two  groups  comprehended  the  entire  domain  over 
which  spirits,  and  for  that  matter  also  the  gods,  exercised  their 
power.  Indeed,  it  would  appear  that  at  one  time  the  two 
names  were  used  to  include  the  gods  as  well  as  the  spirits. 
At  least  this  appears  to  be  the  case  in  Assyria,  and  the  conclu- 
sion may  be  drawn,  from  the  somewhat  vague  use  of  the  terms, 
that  the  names  belong  to  a  very  early  period  of  the  religion, 
when    the  distinction   between    gods   and   spirits   was   not   yet 

1  Very  many  of  the  names  of  the  Semitic  gods  and  heroes  signify  strong,  e.g.,  El, 
Aiion,  Baal,  Etana,  Kcmosh,  etc.  , 

2  The  final  vowel  i  would,  on  the  basis  of  the  explanation  offered,  be  paralleled  by 
the  i  of  Igigi  —  an  indication  of  the  plural.     See  Delitzsch,  Assyr.  Gram.  §  67,  1. 

3  The  Igigi  are  designated  ideographically  as  v  plus  ii,  and  Hommel  {Semitische 
Volkcr,  p.  491)  properly  suggests  that  this  peculiar  writing  points  to  an  earlier  use  of 
five  as  constituting  the  group.  Hommel,  however,  does  not  see  that  neither  five  nor 
seven  are  to  be  interpreted  literally,  but  that  both  represent  a  large  round  number, 
and,  therefore,  also  a  holy  one. 


186  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

clearly  marked.  However  that  may  be,  in  Babylonian  hymns 
and  incantations  the  Igigi  and  Anunnaki  play  a  very  prominent 
part.  Anu  is  represented  as  the  father  of  both  groups.  But 
they  are  also  at  the  service  of  other  gods,  notably  of  Bel,  who 
is  spoken  of  as  their  '  lord,'  of  Ninib,  of  Marduk,  of  Ishtar,  and 
of  Nergal.  They  prostrate  themselves  before  these  superior 
masters,  and  the  latter  at  times  manifest  their  anger  against 
the  Igigi.  They  are  sent  out  by  the  gods  to  do  service.  Their 
character  is,  on  the  whole,  severe  and  cruel.  They  are  not 
favorable  to  man,  but  rather  hostile  to  him.  Their  brilliancy 
consumes  the  land.  Their  power  is  feared,  and  Assyrian  kings 
more  particularly  are  fond  of  adding  the  Igigi  and  Anunnaki  to 
the  higher  powers  —  the  gods  proper  —  when  they  wish  to 
inspire  a  fear  of  their  own  majesty.  At  times  the  Igigi  alone 
are  mentioned,  but  generally  the  Igigi  and  Anunnaki  appear  in 
combination.  To  the  latest  period  of  Babylonian  history  these 
two  groups  continue  to  receive  official  recognition.  Nebuchad- 
nezzar II.1  dedicates  an  altar,  which  he  erects  at  the  wall  of  the 
city  of  Babylon,  to  the  Igigi  and  Anunnaki.  The  altar  is  called 
a  structure  of  'joy  and  rejoicing,'  and  on  the  festival  of  Marduk, 
who  is  the  'lord  of  the  Anunnaki  and  Igigi,'  sacrifices  were 
offered  at  this  altar.  In  the  great  temple  of  Marduk  there  was 
a  fountain  in  which  the  gods  and  the  Anunnaki,  according  to  a 
Babylonian  hymn,  'bathe  their  countenance';  and  when  to  this 
notice  it  be  added  that  another  hymn  praises  them  as  the 
'  shining  chiefs'  of  the  ancient  city  of  Eridu,  it  will  be  apparent 
that  the  conceptions  attached  to  this  group  span  the  entire 
period  of   Babylonian-Assyrian   history. 

Besides  the  Igigi  and  Anunnaki  there  is  still  a  third  group  of 
seven  spirits,  generally  designated  as  the  'evil  demons,'  who 
represent  the  embodiment  of  all  physical  suffering  to  which 
man  is  subject.  They  appear,  however,  only  in  the  incanta- 
tion texts,  and  we  may,  therefore,  postpone  their  consideration 

1  IK.  55,  col.  iv.  11.  7-13. 


ANIMISM  IN   THE   BABYLONIAN  RELIGION.  187 

until  that  subject  is  reached.  The  point  to  be  borne  in  mind, 
and  which  I  have  attempted  to  emphasize  in  this  place,  is  the 
close  relationship  existing  in  the  popular  forms  of  the  Baby- 
lonian religion  between  the  gods  and  the  spirits.  The  latter 
belong  to  the  pantheon  as  much  as  the  former.  Primitive 
animism  continues  to  enchain  the  minds  of  the  people,  despite 
the  differentiation  established  between  the  higher  and  the 
secondary  powers,  and  despite  the  high  point  of  development 
reached  by  the  schoolmen  in  their  attempts  to  systematize  and, 
in  a  measure,  to  purify  the  ancient  beliefs. 


CHAPTER   XII. 

THE   ASSYRIAN   PANTHEON. 

We  have  now  reached  a  point  where  it  will  be  proper  to  set 
forth  the  phases  that  the  Babylonian  religion  assumed  during 
the  days  of  Assyrian   supremacy. 

An  enumeration  of  the  gods  occurring  in  the  inscriptions  of 
the  rulers  of  Assyria  from  the  earliest  days  to  the  close  of  the 
empire,  so  far  as  published,  will  show  better  than  any  argu- 
ment the  points  of  similarity  between  the  Babylonian  and  the 
Assyrian  pantheon.  These  gods  are  in  alphabetical  order:1 
Anu,  Ashur,  Bel,  Belit,  Gaga,  Gibil,  Gamlat,  Gula,  Dibbarra, 
Dagan,  Damkina,  Ea,  Ishtar,  Kadi,  Khani,  Marduk,  Nairn, 
Nana,  Nin-gal,  Nergal,  Ninib,  Nusku,  Ramman,  Sin,  Shala, 
Shalman,  Shamash,  Shanitka(P),  Tashmitum.  Of  these  quite  a 
number  are  only  mentioned  incidentally,  and  in  a  manner  that 
indicates  that  they  do  not  belong  to  the  pantheon  in  the  strict 
sense.  Others,  like  Khani2  and  Gamlat,  —  -i.e.,  'the  merciful 
one,' '"--  may  turn  out  to  be  mere  epithets  of  deities  otherwise 
known  ;  and  it  would  hardly  be  legitimate  to  extend  the  list  by 
including  deities  that  have  not  yet  been  identified,4  and  which 
may  similarly  be  only  variant  forms,  descriptive  of  such  as  are 
already  included.  But  however  much  this  list  may  be  ex- 
tended and  modified  by  further  publications  and  researches, 
the  historical  material  at  hand  for  the  Assyrian  period  of  the 
religion  is  sufficient  to  warrant  us  in  setting  up  two  classes 
of    the    pantheon, -- one    class    constituting    the    active    pan- 

1  Semitic  alphabet. 

-  A  form  of  Nebo,  according  to  Meissner-Rost,  Bauinschriften  SanAerid's,  p.  105. 
:!  See  Meissner  Rost,  id.  p.  10S. 

4  As  e.g.,  En-e-in-pal  (Meissner-Rost,  ib.  p.  76),  Sherua,  and  Azag-sir  (il>.  p.  101). 
F01  furthei  lists  of  deities,  see  pp.  ' ;  |.  538. 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  189 

theon,  the  other,  deities  introduced  by  the  kings  merely  for 
purposes  of  self-glorification,  or  to  give  greater  solemnity  to 
the  invocations  and  warnings  that  formed  a  feature  of  all  com- 
memorative and  dedicatory  inscriptions,  as  well  as  of  the 
annals  proper.  The  future  additions  to  the  list,  it  is  safe  to 
assert,  will  increase  the  second  class  and  only  slightly  modify, 
if  at  all,  the  first  class.  Bearing  in  mind  this  distinction  we 
may  put  down  as  active  forces  in  Assyria  the  following :  Anu, 
Ashur,  Bel,  Belit,  Gula,  Dagan,  Ea,  Khani,  Ishtar,  Marduk, 
Nabu,  Nergal,  Ninib,  Nusku,  Ramman,  Sin,  Shala,  Shamash, 
Tashmitum. 

Comparing  both  the  fuller  and  the  restricted  list  with  the 
Babylonian  pantheon  during  the  two  periods  treated  of  in 
the  preceding  chapters,  we  are  struck  by  three  facts:  (i) 
the  smaller  compass  of  the  Assyrian  pantheon  ;  (2)  the  more 
restricted  introduction  of  what,  for  want  of  a  better  term,  we 
may  call  minor  deities ;  and  (3)  the  small  number  of  new 
deities  met  with.  To  take  up  the  latter  point,  the  only  gods 
in  the  above  list  that  are  not  found  in  Babylonian  inscriptions 
are  Ashur,  Gibil,  Gamlat,  Dibbarra,  Kadi,  Nusku,  Shala,  Sha- 
nitka.  Of  these  it  is  purely  accidental  that  Gibil,  Dibbarra, 
Nusku,  and  Shala  are  not  mentioned,  for,  except  those  that 
are  foreign  importations,  they  belong  to  Babylonia  as  much 
as  to  Assyria  and  fall  within  the  periods  of  the  Babylonian 
religion  that  have  been  treated  of.  Kadi  is  a  foreign  deity.1 
Shanitka(?)  may  only  be  a  title  of  some  goddess,  and  Shalman 
(or  Shalmannu)  occurs  only  in  proper  names,  and  may  like- 
wise be  only  a  title  of  some  god.2  There  remains,  as  the 
only  god  peculiar  to  Assyria,  the  god  Ashur.  But  for  this 
god,  the  Babylonian  and  the  Assyrian  pantheon  are  identical. 

1  The  Assyrian  kings  are  fond  of  mentioning  foreign  deities,  and  of  adding  them 
to  their  pantheon.  In  his  annals  (VR.  col.  vi.  11.  30-43)  Ashurbanabal  gives  a  list 
of  twenty  Elamitic  deities  captured  by  him. 

2  Tiele  {Babyl.-Assyr.  Gcschichte,  p.  519)  suggests  Ea. 


190  A.  /  B  )  /  ( > XI AN- ASS  YRIAN  RELIGION. 

When  we  come,  however,  to  the  position  held  by  the  gods  in 
the  pantheon,  their  relationship  to  one  another,  and  the  traits 
which  secured  for  them  popular  and  royal  favor,  the  differ- 
ences between  the  Babylonian  and  the  Assyrian  phases  of  the 
religion  will  be  found  to  be  more  accentuated. 

As  for  the  smaller  compass  of  the  Assyrian  pantheon,  we 
may  recognize  in  this  a  further  advance  of  the  tendency 
already  noted  in  the  second  period  of  the  Babylonian  religion. 
There,  too,  we  found  the  minor  local  cults  yielding  to  the 
growing  influence  and  favor  of  certain  gods  associated  with 
the  great  centers  of  Babylonian  life,  or  possessing  attributes 
that  accorded  more  with  the  new  political  order  and  the 
general  advance  of  culture.  One  of  the  chief  factors  in  this 
tendency  towards  centralization  was,  as  we  saw,  the  supremacy 
accorded  to  Marduk  in  the  new  empire  as  the  patron  god  of 
the  capital,  and  that  not  only  led  to  his  absorbing  the  role  of 
other  deities,1  but  resulted  also  in  strengthening  the  belief 
that  there  were  only  a  limited  number  of  deities  upon  whose 
power  and  willingness  to  aid  dependence  could  be  placed. 
This  tendency  was  in  a  measure  offset  by  the  pride  that  the 
rulers  of  the  second  Babylonian  period  still  took  in  parading 
at  times,  as  large  a  number  as  possible  of  deities  under  whose 
protection  they  claimed  to  stand.  As  we  pass  from  one  age  to 
the  other,  the  number  of  minor  deities  thus  invoked  also  tends 
to  diminish,  and  the  occasions  likewise  when  they  are  invoked 
become  limited  to  the  more  solemn  invocations  at  the  begin- 
ning and   the  close  of  inscriptions.     Now,  in  Assyria  we  have 

1  An  interesting  example  of  this  tendency  is  furnished  by  a  tablet  published  by 
T.  'i.  Pinches  {Journal  of  tin-  Victoria  Institute,  xxviii.  8-10),  in  which  the 
name  Marduk  is  treated  almost  as  a  generic  term  fur  deity.  Nergal  is  called  '  the 
Marduk  of  warfare* ;  Nebo, '  the  Marduk  of  earthly  possessions  ';  Ninib, '  the  Marduk 
of  strength' ;  En-lil,  'the  Marduk  of  sovereignty' ;  and  so  on,  in  a  long  enumeration, 
the  gods  are  regarded  as  so  many  forms  ol  Marduk.  Pinches'  conclusion  that  the 
lisl  points  to  monotheistic  beliefs  is.  however,  unwarranted.  The  list  only  illustrates 
a  tendency  towards  a  centralization  of  divine  powers  in  Marduk,  that  accompanies 
the  political  centralization  of  the   period. 


THE    ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  191 

much  the  same  political  conditions  as  in  Babylonia,  only 
intensified.  Here,  too,  we  have  one  god  towering  above  the 
others,  only  to  a  still  greater  degree  even  than  Marduk  in 
Babylonia.  Marduk,  while  absorbing  the  role  of  the  old  Bel, 
is  still  bound  to  acknowledge  the  fathership  of  Ea.  For  a 
time  he  has  to  fear  the  rivalry  of  Nabu,  and  we  have  seen  that 
during  the  Cassitic  rule,  the  glory  of  Marduk  is  somewhat 
dimmed.  The  god  who  comes  to  stand  at  the  head  of  the 
Assyrian  pantheon  —  Ashur  —  suffers  from  none  of  these 
restrictions.  He  is  independent  of  other  gods  and  is  under 
no  obligations  to  any  of  his  fellows,  and  his  rule  once  acknowl- 
edged remains  supreme,  with,  perhaps,  one  short  period 
excepted,1  throughout  all  the  vicissitudes  that  the  empire 
undergoes.  As  a  consequence  of  this  unique  position,  Ashur 
is  so  completely  identified  with  Assyria,  that  with  the  fall 
of  the  empire  he,  too,  disappears,  —  whereas  the  Marduk  cult 
survives  the  loss  of  Babylonian  independence,  and  is  undis- 
turbed even  by  the  final  absorption  of  Babylonia  into  the 
empire  of  Cyrus.  The  tendency  towards  centralization  of  the 
cult  is  even  more  pronounced,  therefore,  in  Assyria  than  in 
Babylonia.  Marduk  is  a  leader  who  has  many  gods  as  fol- 
lowers, but  all  of  whom  have  their  distinct  functions.  Ashur 
is  a  host  in  himself.  He  needs  no  attendants.  His  aid  suf- 
fices for  all  things,  and  such  is  the  attachment  of  his  subjects 
to  him  that  it  would  almost  appear  like  an  insult  to  his  dignity 
to  attach  a  long  array  of  minor  gods  to  him.  For  the  Assyrian 
kings  the  same  motives  did  not  exist  as  for  the  Babylonians 
to  emphasize  their  control  over  all  parts  of  their  empire  by 
adding  the  chief  gods  of  these  districts  to  the  pantheon. 
Assyria  was  never  split  up  into  independent  states  like  Baby- 
lonia before  the  days  of  Hammurabi.  The  capital,  it  is  true, 
changed  with  considerable  frequency,  but  there  was  always 
only  one  great  center  of  political  power.     So  far  as  Assyrian 

1  See  below,  pp.  228,  229. 


192  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION 

control  over  Babylonia  was  concerned,  it  was  sufficient  for  the 
purposes  of  the  Assyrian  rulers  to  claim  Marduk  as  their  patron 
and  protector,  and,  as  we  shall  see,  they  always  made  a  point 
of  emphasizing  this  claim.  Hence  we  have  only  'great  gods,' 1 
and  no  minor  deities,  in  the  train  of  Ashur.  These  '  great 
gods '  could  not  be  expunged  from  the  pantheon  without  a 
complete  severance  of  the  ties  that  bound  the  Assyrians  to 
their  past.  Kings  of  great  empires  seldom  favor  religious 
revolutions.  But  by  the  side  of  Ashur  these  great  gods  pale, 
and  in  the  course  of  time  the  tendency  becomes  more  marked 
to  regard  them  merely  as  formal  members  of  a  little  court  with 
few  functions  of  their  own,  beyond  that  of  adding  by  their 
presence  to  the  majesty  and  glory  of  Ashur.  One  receives  the 
impression  that  in  Assyria  only  a  few  of  the  gods  invoked  by 
the  kings  at  the  side  of  Ashur  exert  any  real  influence  on  the 
lives  of  the  people ;  and  such  as  do,  gain  favor  through  pos- 
sessing in  some  measure  the  chief  attribute  that  distinguished 
Ashur,  —  prowess  in  war.  They  are  little  Ashurs,  as  it  were, 
by  the  side  of  the  great  one.  The  position  of  Ashur  in  the 
Assyrian  pantheon  accounts  for  the  general  tendencies  mani- 
fested by  the  religion  of  the  northern  empire,  and  upon  a  clear 
conception  of  the  character  of  Ashur  depends  our  understand- 
ing of  the  special  points  that  distinguish  the  other  gods  from 
what  we  have  learned  of  their  character  and  traits  in  the  south- 
ern states.  The  beginning,  therefore,  of  an  account  of  the 
Assyrian  pantheon  is  properly  to  be  made  with  Ashur. 

Ashur. 

The  starting-point  of  the  career  of  Ashur  is  the  city  of 
Ashur,  situated  on  tin;  west  bank  of  the  Tigris,  not  far  from 
the  point  where  the  lower  Zab  Hows   into  the  Tigris.      Ashur  is 

i  So  the  gods  of  the  Assyrian  pantheon  are  generally  termed  in  the  inscriptions  of 
the  kings. 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  193 

therefore  distinctly  a  local  deity,  and  so  far  as  the  testimony  of 
the  texts  goes,  he  was  never  regarded  in  early  days  in  any  other 
light  than  as  the  local  patron  of  the  city  to  Which  he  has  given 
his  name.  He  was  never  worshipped,  so  far  as  can  be  ascer- 
tained, as  a  manifestation  of  any  of  the  great  powers  of  nature, 
—  the  sun  or  the  moon  ;  though,  if  anything,  he  was  originally  a 
solar  deity.1  Nor  was  he  a  symbol  of  any  of  the  elements, —  fire 
or  water.  In  this  respect  he  differs  from  Sin,  Shamash,  Nusku,2 
and  Ea,  whose  worship  was  localized,  without  affecting  the 
^//rtj7-universal  character  that  these  deities  possessed.  As  a 
local  deity  his  worship  must  have  been  limited  to  the  city  over 
which  he  spread  his  protecting  arm  ;  and  if  we  find  the  god 
afterwards  holding  jurisdiction  over  a  much  larger  territory 
than  the  city  of  Ashur,  it  is  because  in  the  north,  as  in  the 
south,  a  distinct  state  or  empire  was  simply  regarded  as  the 
extension  of  a  city.  Ashur  became  the  god  of  Assyria  as 
the  rulers  of  the  city  of  Ashur  grew  in  power,  —  in  the  same 
way  that  Marduk,  upon  the  union  of  the  Babylonian  states 
under  the  supremacy  of  the  city  of  Babylon,  became  the  god 
of  all  Babylonia.  But  a  difference  between  the  north  and 
the  south  is  to  be  noted.  Whereas  Marduk,  although  the 
god  of  Babylonia,  was  worshipped  only  in  the  city  of  Baby- 
lon where  he  was  supposed  to  have  his  seat,  temples  to 
Ashur  existed  in  various  parts  of  the  Assyrian  empire.  The 
god  accompanied  the  kings  in  their  wars,  and  wherever  the 
rulers  settled,  there  the  god  was  worshipped.  So  in  the  vari- 
ous changes  of  official  residences  that  took  place  in  the  course 
of  Assyrian  history  from  Ashur  to  Calah,  and  from  Calah 
to  Nineveh,  and  from  Nineveh  to  Khorsabad,  the  god  took 
part,  and  his  central  seat  of  worship  depended  upon  the  place 
that  the  kings  chose  for  their  official  residence.  At  the 
same  time,  while  the  cult  in  the  various  temples  that  in  the 
course  of  time  were  erected  in  his  honor  probably  continued 

l  See  below,  p.  195.  2  See  below,  p.  220, 


194  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

without  interruption,  there  was  always  one  place  —  the  official 
residence-- which  formed  the  central  spot  of  worship.  There 
the  god  was  supposed  to  dwell  for  the  time  being.  One 
factor,  perhaps,  that  ought  to  be  taken  into  consideration  in 
accounting  for  this  movable  disposition  of  the  god  was  that 
he  was  not  symbolized  exclusively  by  a  statue,  as  Marduk 
and  the  other  great  gods  were.  His  chief  symbol  was  a  stand- 
ard that  could  be  carried  from  place  to  place,  and  indeed  was 
so  made  that  it  could  be  carried  into  the  thick  of  the  fray, 
in  order  to  assure  the  army  of  the  god's  presence.  The 
standard  consisted  of  a  pole  surrounded  by  a  disc  enclosed 
within  two  wings,  while  above  the  disc  stood  the  figure  of  a 
warrior  in  the  act  of  shooting  an  arrow.1  The  statues  of  the 
gods  were  deposited  in  shrines,  and  after  being  carried  about, 
as  was  done  on  festive  days  or  other  occasions,  they  would 
be  replaced  in  their  shrines.  The  military  standard,  however, 
followed  the  camp  everywhere,  and  when  the  kings  chose  to 
fix  upon  a  new  place  for  their  military  encampment  —  and 
such  the  official  residences  of  the  Assyrian  warrior-kings  in  large 
measure  were  —  the  standard  would  repose  in  the  place  selected. 
How  this  standard  came  to  be  chosen,  and  when,  is  another  ques- 
tion, and  one  more  difficult  to  answer.  It  may  be  that  the  repre- 
sentation of  the  god  by  a  standard  was  a  consequence  of  the 
fondness  that  the  rulers  of  Ashur  manifested  for  perpetual  war- 
fare ;  or,  in  other  words,  that  the  god  Ashur  was  represented  by 
a  standard  so  that  he  might  be  carried  into  the  battle  and  be 
moved  from  place  to  place.  At  all  events,  the  two  things 
the  standard  and  the  warlike  character  of  the  subjects  of 
Ashur  —  stood  in  close  relationship  to  one  another,  and  the 
further  conclusion  is  justified  that  when  a  military  standard 
came  to  be  chosen  as  the  symbol  of  Ashur,  the  god  was  recog- 

1  A  description  of  this  symbol  occurs  in  a  text  of  Sennacherib  (Meissner-Rost, 
Bauinschriften  SanheriVs,  p.  94).  The  symbol  itself  is  found  on  sculptured  slabs 
and  on  seal  cylinders. 


THE    ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  195 

nized  distinctly  as  a  god  of  war.  The  symbols  accompanying 
the  standard  are  of  importance  as  enabling  us  to  determine 
something  more  regarding  the  character  of  Ashur.  In  the  first 
place,  the  fact  that  it  contained  a  figure  may  be  taken  as  an 
indication  that  the  god  was  at  one  time  represented  by  a  statue, 
—  as  indeed  we  know  from  other  evidence,1  —  and  that  the 
change  of  his  symbol  from  a  statue  to  a  standard  is  a  result  of 
the  military  activity  of  the  Assyrians.  The  winged  disc  is  so 
general  a  symbol  of  the  sun  in  the  religious  system  of  various 
ancient  nations2  that  one  cannot  escape  the  conclusion  that 
the  symbol  must  be  similarly  interpreted  in  the  case  before  us. 
Is  it  possible,  therefore,  that  in  a  period  lying  beyond  that 
revealed  by  the  oldest  inscriptions  at  our  disposal,  Ashur  was 
worshipped  as  a  solar  deity?  One  is  bound  to  confess  that 
the  evidence  does  not  warrant  us  in  regarding  Ashur  as  any- 
thing but  the  patron  of  the  city  of  Ashur.  Nowhere  do  we 
find  any  allusion  from  which  we  are  justified  in  concluding  that 
he  originally  represented  some  elemental  power  or  phenomenon. 
Tiele"  is  of  the  decided  opinion  that  Ashur  was  at  his  origin  a 
nature  god  of  some  kind,  and  he  goes  so  far  as  to  suggest, 
though  with  due  reserve,  the  possible  identification  of  Ashur 
with  Sin.  No  doubt  Tiele  is  prompted  to  this  view  by  the 
example  of  the  great  god  of  the  south,  Marduk,  who  is  origi- 
nally a  solar  deity,  and  by  all  the  other  great  gods  who  represent, 
or  represented,  some  power  of  nature.  Analogy,  however,  is 
not  a  sufficiently  reliable  guide  to  settle  a  question  for  the 
solution  of  which  historical  material  is  lacking.  So  much, 
however,  may  be  said,  that  if  we  are  to  assume  that  Ashur 
personified  originally  some  natural  power,  the  symbol  of  the 
winged  disc  lends  a  strong  presumption  in  favor  of  supposing 

1  So  Sennacherib  still  speaks  of  images  of  Ashur,  and  of  the  great  gods  erected 
by  him  (Meissner-Rost,  Bauinschriften  San/ierid's,  p.  94). 

2  See  Stevenson,  "  The   Feather  and  the  Wing  in  Mythology,"  Oriental  Studies 
of  the  Phila.  Oriental  Club,  pp.  236-239. 

3  Babyl.-Assyr.  Geschichte,  p.  533. 


196  BA  />' )  Z  I )XJA  N-  ASS  \  RJAN  REL  Hi  I  ON. 

him  to  have  been  some  phase  of  the  sun.  So  much,  then,  for 
the  general  character  of  Ashur.  Before  passing  on  to  a  speci- 
fication of  his  role  and  his  traits,  as  revealed  by  the  historical 
texts,  a  word  remains  to  be  said  as  to  the  etymology  and  form 
of  the  name.  Ashur  is  the  only  instance  that  we  have  of  a 
god  expressly  giving  his  name  to  a  city,  for  the  name  of  the 
city  can  only  be  derived  from  that  of  the  god,  and  not  vice 
versa.  The  identification  of  the  god  with  his  favorite  town 
must  have  been  so  complete  that  the  town,  which  probably  had 
some  specific  name  of  its  own,  became  known  simply  as  the 
'city  of  the  god  Ashur.'  From  such  a  designation  it  is  but 
a  small  step  to  call  the  city  simply,  Ashur.  The  difference 
between  the  god  and  the  city  would  be  indicated  by  the  deter- 
minative for  deity,  which  was  only  attached  to  the  former, 
while  the  latter  was  written  with  the  determinative  attached 
to  towns.  When  this  city  of  Ashur  extended  its  bounds  until 
it  became  coequal  with  the  domain  of  Assyria,  the  name 
of  the  god  was  transferred  to  the  entire  northern  district  of 
Mesopotamia,  which,  as  the  country  of  the  god  Ashur,  was 
written  with  the  determinative  for  country.1  The  ideographs 
which  the  Assyrian  scribes  employed  in  writing  the  name  of 
the  god  reveal  the  meaning  they  attached  to  it.  He  is 
described  ideographically  as  the  'good  god.'  This  inter- 
pretation accords  admirably  with  the  general  force  of  the 
verbal  stem  underlying  the  name.  In  both  Hebrew  and 
Assyrian  a-sh-r  signifies  'to  be  gracious,  to  grant  blessing,  to 
cause  to  prosper.'  Ashur,  therefore,  is  the  god  that  blesses 
his  subjects,  and  to  the  latter  he  would  accordingly  appear 
as  the  'good  god'  par  excellence.  If  the  tempting  etymology 
of  our  own  word  'god,'  which  connects  it  with  'good,'  be 
correct,  'god'  would  be  almost  the  perfect  equivalent  of 
Ashur.       It    is    not    necessary    to    conclude,    as    Tiele    does,2 

i  For  the  sake  of  convenience  it  is  customary  to  distinguish  between  Ashur  the 
god,  and  the  country  by  writing  the  latter  with  a  double  sh  —  Ashshur, 
2  Gesi  ///.  hie,  p.  533. 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  Y)l 

that  Ashur,  as  the  'good  one,'  is  an  ethical  abstraction,  but 
certainly  a  designation  of  a  god  as  '  a  good  one'  sounds  more 
like  a  descriptive  epithet  than  like  a  name.  The  supposition 
that  Ashur  was  not,  therefore,  the  original  name  of  the  god 
receives  a  certain  measure  of  force  from  this  consideration. 
Moreover,  there  are  indications  that  there  actually  existed 
another  form  of  his  name,  namely,  Anshar.1  This  form 
Anshar  would,  according  to  the  phonetic  laws  prevailing  in 
Assyria,  tend  to  become  Ash-shar.2  Ashur  —  the  'good  one' 
—  would  thus  turn  out  to  be  an  epithet  of  the  god,  chosen 
as  a  'play'  suggested  by  Ash-shar,  just  as  we  found  Gula 
called  the  lady  of  Ekalli,  and  again  Kallat  (bride).3  The 
etymology  of  Anshar  is  as  obscure  as  that  of  most  of  the 
ancient  gods  of  Babylonia,  —  as  of  Sin,  Marduk,  Ishtar,  and 
many  more.  But  before  leaving  the  subject,  it  will  be  proper 
to  call  attention  to  the  role  that  a  god  Anshar  plays  in  the 
Babylonian-Assyrian  cosmological  system.  Anshar zn6Kis/nir 
are  the  second  pair  of  deities  to  be  created,  the  first  pair  being 
Lak/imu  and  Lakhamu.  In  the  great  fight  of  the  gods  against 
the  monster  Tiamat,  it  would  appear  that,  according  to  one 
version  at  least,  Anshar  sends  Anu,  Ea,  and  finally  Bel-Marduk, 
in  turn  to  destroy  the  monster.  He  appears,  therefore,  to  have 
exercised  a  kind  of  supremacy  over  the  gods.  Assuming  the 
correctness  of  the  deductions,  according  to  which  Ashur  is  an 
epithet  arising  by  a  play  upon  Ash-shar  (from  an  original 
Anshar),  it  is  hardly  open  to  doubt  that  this  Anshar  is  the 
same  as  the  one  who  appears  in  the  cosmology.  On  the 
other  hand,  it  is  difficult  to  suppose  that  Anshar  should  have 
played  so  significant  a  part  in  Babylonian  traditions  and  yet 
find  no  mention  in  the  text  of  the  rulers  of  Babylonia.  Bearing 
in  mind  what  has  been  said  as  to  the  manner  in  which  ancient 

1  See  Jensen,  Zcifs.  fur  Assyr.  i.  i  scq.  and   Delitzsch,  Das  Babylonische  Wclt- 
sch'dpfungsepos,  p.  94. 

2  By  the  assimilation  of  the  n  to  the  following  consonant. 

3  See  above,  pp.  173,  175. 


198  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

traditions  and  myths  were  remodeled  by  the  schoolmen  to  con- 
form to  later  ideas,  —  we  have  seen  how  in  this  process  the  popu- 
larity of  Marduk  led  to  his  assuming  the  role  originally  played  by 
Bel, — may  not  the  recognition  given  to  Anshar  be  a  conces- 
sion, made  at  the  time  that  Assyria  had  begun  her  glorious 
career  (c.  1400  B.C.),  to  the  chief  god  of  the  northern   empire? 

That  such  tendencies  to  glorify  Ashur  may  justly  be  sought 
for  in  part  of  the  religious  literature  is  proved  by  a  version  of 
one  of  the  series  of  tablets  giving  an  account  of  the  crea- 
tion, and  which  assigns  to  Anshar  the  work  of  building  Esharra, 
—  i.e.,  the  earth,  —  that,  according  to  another  version,  belongs 
to  Marduk.1  Evidently,  then,  just  as  the  Babylonian  theolo- 
gians sought  to  glorify  Marduk  at  the  expense  of  Bel,  so 
Assyrian  theologians,  or  such  as  stood  under  Assyrian  influ- 
ences, did  not  hesitate  to  replace  Marduk  by  their  own  favorite, 
Anshar.  In  the  chapter  on  the  '  Cosmology '  we  will  have 
occasion  to  come  back  to  this  point.  For  present  purposes  it 
is  sufficient  to  have  shown  that  the  position  of  Anshar  in  the 
remodeled  traditions  is  an  argument  in  favor  of  regarding 
Anshar  as  the  real  name  of  the  god  who  stands  at  the  head 
of  the  Assyrian  pantheon. 

In  the  oldest  Assyrian  inscription  known  to  us,  the  god 
Ashur  is  mentioned.  Samsi-Ramman,  who  does  not  yet 
assume  the  title  of  king,  but  only  patesi,—  i.<\,  'religious 
chief,'" — prides  himself  upon  being  '  the  builder  of  the  tem- 
ple of  Ashur.'  The  phrase  does  not  mean  that  he  founded 
the  temple,  but  only  that  he  undertook  building  operations 
in  connection  with  it.  The  date  of  this  ruler  may  be  fixed 
roughly  at  1S50  B.C.,  and  since  the  two  inscribed  bricks 
that  we  have  of  Samsi-Ramman  were  found  in  the  ruins 
of   Kalah-Shcrgat, -- the  site  of  the  ancient  city  of  Ashur, — 

1  Jensen,  Kosmologie,  p.  275. 

2  The  combination  of  religious  supremacy  with  political  power,  which  character- 
izes the  social  state  of  ancient  Babylonia  and  Assyria,  gives  to  the  title  fatesi 
a  double  significance.     In  Babylonia,  moreover,  it  acquires  the  force  of  vassal-king. 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  199 

there   can,  of  course,   be   no   doubt   that   the  temple   at   that 
place  is  referred  to. 

The  rulers  of  Assyria,  even  after  they  assumed  the  title  of 
'king'  (c.  1500  B.C.),  were  still  fond  of  calling  themselves 
the  '  priest '  of  the  god  Ashur,  and  frequently  gave  this  title 
the  preference  over  others.  In  the  fourteenth  century  the 
temple  of  Ashur  seems  to  have  suffered  at  the  hands  of  the 
Cassites,  who  attempted  to  extend  their  power  to  the  north. 
This  plan  was,  however,  frustrated  by  Ramman-nirari  I.,  who 
forces  the  Cassites  to  retreat,  successfully  opposes  other  enemies 
of  Assyria,  and  restores  the  injured  parts  of  Ashur's  temple. 
From  this  time  on,  and  for  a  period  of  several  centuries, 
Assyria  assumes  an  aggressive  attitude,  and  as  a  consequence 
the  dependency  upon  the  god  is  more  keenly  felt  than 
before.  The  enemies  against  whom  the  kings  proceed  are 
called  '  the  enemies  of  Ashur,'  the  troops  of  the  king  are  the 
troops  of  Ashur,  and  the  weapons  with  which  they  fight  are  the 
weapons  of  Ashur.  It  is  he  who  causes  the  arms  of  Tiglath- 
pileser  I.  to  strike  down  his  foes.  The  nations  cannot  endure 
the  awful  sight  of  the  god.  His  brilliancy  —  the  reference  being 
no  doubt  to  the  shining  standard  as  it  was  carried  into  the 
fray  —  inspires  on  every  side  a  terror  that  casts  all  enemies  to 
the  ground.  All  warfare  is  carried  on  in  the  name  of  Ashur. 
The  statement  may  be  taken  literally,  for  an  oracle  was  sought 
at  critical  moments  to  determine  the  course  that  was  to  be 
pursued.  The  fight  itself  takes  place  with  the  help  of  the  god, 
—  again  to  be  taken  literally,  for  the  god,  represented  by  his 
symbol,  is  present  on  the  battlefield.  The  victory,  accord- 
ingly, belongs  to  the  god  in  the  first  instance,  and  only  in  a 
secondary  degree  to  the  king.  The  nations  are  vanquished  by 
Ashur,  the  conquered  cities  become  subject  to  Ashur,  and 
when  the  tribute  is  brought  by  the  conquered  foe,  it  is  to  Ashur 
that  it  is  offered  by  the  kings.  Proud  and  haughty  as  the  latter 
were,  and  filled   with  greed  for  glory  and  power,  they  never 


200  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIC /ON. 

hesitated  to  humble  themselves  before  their  god.  They  freely 
acknowledged  that  everything"  they  possessed  was  due  to  Ashur's 
favor.  It  was  he  who  called  them  to  the  throne,  who  gave 
them  the  sceptre  and  crown,  and  who  firmly  established  their 
sovereignty.  Through  Ashur,  who  gives  the  king  his  invincible 
weapon, — the  mighty  bow,  —  the  kingdom  is  enlarged,  until 
the  kings  feel  justified  in  saying  of  themselves  that,  by 
the  nomination  of  Ashur,  they  govern  the  four  quarters  of  the 
world.  Nay,  the  rulers  go  further  and  declare  themselves  to 
be  the  offspring  of  Ashur.  It  is  not  likely  that  they  ever  desired 
such  an  assertion  also  to  be  interpreted  literally.  The  phrase  is 
rather  to  be  taken  as  the  strongest  possible  indication  of  the 
attachment  they  felt  for  their  chief  god.  Everything  that  they 
possessed  coming  directly  from  their  god,  how  could  this  be 
better  expressed  than  by  making  the  god  the  source  of  their 
being  ?  The  phrase,  at  all  events,  is  interesting  as  showing 
that  the  element  of  love  was  not  absent  in  the  emotions  that 
the  thought  of  Ashur  aroused  in  the  breasts  of  his  subjects. 
The  kings  cannot  find  sufficient  terms  of  glorification  to  bestow 
upon  Ashur.  Tiglathpileser  I.  calls  him  '  the  great  lord  ruling 
the  assembly  of  gods,'  and  in  similar  style,  Ashurnasirbal 
invokes  him  as  'the  great  god  of  all  the  gods.'  For  Ram- 
man-nirari  III.,  he  is  the  king  of  the  Igigi  -the  heavenly  host 
of  spirits.  Sargon  lovingly  addresses  him  as  the  father  of  the 
gnils.  Sennacherib  calls  him  the  great  mountain  or  rock,  —  a 
phrase  that  recalls  a  biblical  metaphor  applied  to  the  deity, - 
and  Esarhaddon  speaks  of  him  as  the  'king  of  gods.'  Fre- 
quently Ashur  is  invoked  together  with  other  gods.  He  is 
'the  guide  of  the  gods.'  There  is  only  one  instance  in 
which  he  does  not  occupy  the  first  place.  Ramman-nirari  I., 
to  whom  reference  has  above  been  made,  gives  Ann  the  prefer- 
ence over  Ashur  in  a  list  of  gods,1  to  whom  conjointly  he 
ascribes  his  victories.  We  have  already  had  occasion  (see 
1  The  full  list  is  Ann.  Ashur, Shamash,  Ramman,  and  [shtar. 


THE  ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  201 

pp.  153-155)  to  note  the  antiquity  of  Anu  worship  in  Assyria, 
the  foundation  of  whose  temple  takes  us  beyond  the  period 
of  Samsi-Ramman.  Ashur's  importance  begins  only  with  the 
moment  that  the  rulers  of  his  city  enter  upon  their  career 
of  conquest.  Before  that,  his  power  and  fame  were  limited 
to  the  city  over  which  he  presided.  Those  gods  who  in  the 
south  occupied  a  superior  rank  were  also  acknowledged  in  the 
north.  The  religion  of  the  Assyrians  does  not  acquire  traits 
that  distinguish  it  from  that  of  Babylonia  till  the  rise  of  a  dis- 
tinct Assyrian  empire.  Here,  as  in  Babylonia,  the  religious 
conceptions,  and  in  a  measure  the  art,  are  shaped  by  the  course 
of  political  events.  Anu,  accordingly,  takes  precedence  to 
Ashur  previous  to  the  supremacy  of  the  city  of  Ashur.  This 
superior  rank  belongs  to  him  as  the  supreme  god  of  heaven. 
Ramman-nirari's  reign  marks  a  turning-point  in  the  history 
of  Assyria.  The  enemies  of  Ashur,  who  had  succeeded  for 
a  time  in  obscuring  the  god's  glory  through  the  humiliation 
which  his  land  endured,  were  driven  back,  but  neither  the 
people  nor  the  rulers  had  as  yet  become  conscious  of  the  fact 
that  it  was  solely  to  Ashur  that  the  victory  was  due.  Hence, 
other  gods  are  associated  with  Ashur  by  Ramman-nirari,  and 
the  old  god  Anu  is  accorded  his  proper  rank.  After  the  days 
of  Ramman-nirari,  however,  Ashur's  precedence  over  all  other 
gods  is  established.  Whether  associated  with  Bel  or  with 
Ramman,  or  with  Shamash  and  Ramman,  or  with  a  larger 
representation  of  the  pantheon,  Ashur  is  invariably  mentioned 
first. 

From  what  has  been  said  of  the  chief  trait  of  Assyrian 
history,  it  follows,  as  a  matter  of  course,  that  the  popularity  of 
Ashur  is  due  to  the  military  successes  of  the  Assyrian  armies ; 
and  it  follows,  with  equal  necessity,  that  Ashur,  whatever  he 
may  originally  have  been,  becomes  purely  a  god  of  war,  from 
the  moment  that  Assyria  enters  upon  what  appeared  to  be  her 
special  mission.    All  the  titles  given  to  Ashur  by  the  kings  may 


202  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

be  said  to  follow  from  his  role  as  the  god  who  presides  over  the 
fortunes  of  the  wars.  If  he  is  the  '  ruler  of  all  the  gods,'  and 
their  father,  he  is  so  simply  by  virtue  of  that  same  superior 
strength  which  makes  him  the  'law-giver'  for  mankind,  and  not 
because  of  any  ancient  traditions,  nor  as  an  expression  of  some 
nature-myth.  He  lords  it  over  gods  and  spirits,  but  he  lords  it 
solely  because  of  his  warlike  qualities.  Ashur  is  the  giver  of 
crown  and  sceptre,  and  the  kings  of  Assyria  are  the  patesis 
of  the  god,  his  lieutenants.  He  is  the  god  that  embodies  the 
spirit  of  Assyrian  history,  and  as  such  he  is  the  most  charac- 
teristic personage  of  the  Assyrian  pantheon --in  a  certain 
sense  the  only  characteristic  personage.  So  profound  is  his 
influence  that  almost  all  the  other  gods  of  the  pantheon  take 
on  some  of  his  character.  Whenever  and  wherever  possible, 
those  phases  of  the  god's  nature  are  emphasized  which  point 
to  the  possession  of  power  over  enemies.  The  gods  of  the 
Assyrian  pantheon  impress  one  as  diminutive  Ashurs  by  the 
side  of  the  big  one,  and  in  proportion  as  they  approach  nearer 
to  the  character  of  Ashur  himself,  is  their  hold  upon  the  royal 
favor  strengthened. 

Ishtar. 

Second  in  rank  to  Ashur  during  the  most  glorious  part  of 
Assyrian  history  stands  the  great  goddess  Ishtar.  That  the 
Assyrian  Ishtar  is  identical  with  the  great  goddess  of  the  Baby- 
lonian pantheon  is  beyond  reasonable  doubt.  She  approaches 
closest  to  Nana,  —  the  Ishtar  of  Erech;  but  just  as  we  found  the 
Babylonian  Ishtar  appearing  under  various  names  and  forms, 
so  there  are  no  less  than  three  Ishtars  in  Assyria,  distinguished 
in  the  texts  as  Ishtar  of  Nineveh,  Ishtar  of  Arbela,  and  Ishtar 
who  presides  over  tin-  temple  known  as  Kidmuru  and  who  for 
that  reason  is  generally  called  '  the  queen  of  Kidmuru.'  The 
seat  of  the  latter  was  in  Nineveh,  as  was  of  course  also  the  seat 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  203 

of  Ishtar  of  Nineveh.  The  third  Ishtar  had  her  cult  at  Arbela,1 
a  town  lying  to  the  east  of  Calah  about  midway  between  the 
upper  and  lower  Zab.  It  is  not  easy  to  determine  which  of 
these  three  Ishtars  is  the  oldest.  The  Assyrians  themselves 
seem  to  have  been  aware  of  the  Babylonian  origin  of  Ishtar, 
for  Tiglathpileser  I.  is  at  pains  to  emphasize  that  the  temple  he 
builds  to  Ishtar  in  his  capital  is  dedicated  to  the  'Assyrian  Ish- 
tar.' 2  This  being  the  oldest  mention  of  Ishtar  in  Assyrian  texts, 
we  are  perhaps  warranted  in  concluding  that  the  cult  of  the 
goddess  was  transferred  with  the  seat  of  government  to  Nineveh. 
This  would  not  necessarily  make  Ishtar  of  Nineveh  the  oldest 
of  the  three,  but  accounts  for  the  higher  rank  that  was  accorded 
to  her,  as  against  the  other  two.  Ishtar  of  Arbela  and  the 
queen  of  Kidmuru  do  not  make  their  appearance  so  far  as  the 
historical  texts  are  concerned  till  the  time  of  Esarhaddon  (68 1, 
B.C.)  —  a  comparatively  late  date.  Tiele3  suggests  that  Arbela 
became  the  seat  of  a  school  of  prophets  in  the  service  of  Ishtar. 
The  curious  name  of  the  place,  the  '  four-god '  city,  certainly 
speaks  in  favor  of  supposing  Arbela  to  have  been  a  great  reli- 
gious center,  but  until  excavations  shall  have  been  conducted  on 
the  modern  site  of  the  town,  the  problems  connected  with  the 
worship  of  Ishtar  of  Arbela  cannot  be  solved.  It  is  quite  pos- 
sible, if  not  probable,  that  the  three  Ishtars  are  each  of  inde- 
pendent origin.  The  '  queen  of  Kidmuru,'  indeed,  I  venture 
to  think,  is  the  indigenous  Ishtar  of  Nineveh,  who  is  obliged  to 
yield  her  place  to  the  so-called  '  Assyrian  Ishtar  '  upon  the 
transfer  of  the  capitol  of  Assyria  to  Nineveh,  and  henceforth 
is  known  by  one  of  her  epithets  to  distinguish  her  from  her 
formidable  rival.  The  cult  of  Ishtar  at  Arbela  is  probably,  too, 
of  ancient  date  ;  but  special  circumstances  that  escape  us  appear 

1  More  precisely  Arba-ilu,  signifying  'city  of  the  fourfold  divinity'  or  'four-god' 
city.  Cf.  the  Palestinian  form  Kiryath-Arba,  "four  city,"  —  originally  perhaps,  like- 
wise, a  city  of  four  gods,  rather  than  four  roads  or  four  quarters,  as  commonly 
explained. 

2  IR.  14. 1.  86.  s  Babyl-Assyr.  Geschichte,  p.  S5. 


204  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

to  have  led   to  a  revival   of  interest  in   their  cults  during  the 
period  when  Assyria  reached  the  zenith  of  her  power.     The  im- 
portant point  for  us  to  bear  in  mind  is  that  no  essential  distinc. 
tions  between  these  three  Ishtars  were  made  by  the  Assyrians. 
Their  traits  and  epithets  are  similar,  and  for  all  practieal  pur- 
poses we  have  only  one  Ishtar  in  the   northern   empire.      Next 
to  Ashur,  or  rather  by  the  side  of  Ashur,  Ishtar  was   invoked 
as  the  great  goddess  of  battle  and  war.      This  trait,  however, 
was  not  given  to  her  by  the  Assyrians.      Hammurabi  views  the 
goddess  in   this  light,1  and  in  the   Izdubar  or  Gilgamesh  epic, 
as  already  pointed  out,  she  appeal's  at  times  in  the  role  of  a 
violent  destroyer.     The  warlike  phase  of  the  goddess's  nature  is 
largely  accentuated  in   the  Assyrian  pantheon  and  dwelt  upon 
to  the  exclusion  of  that  softer  and  milder  side  which  we  have 
seen  characterized  her  as  '  the  mother  of  mankind.'      Her  role 
as  the  goddess  of  war  grows  in   prominence  as  the  Assyrian 
rulers  proceed   in  their  triumphal    careers.      Ashurrishishi   (c. 
1 150  B.C.)  invokes  her  simply  as  the  superior  goddess,  but   for 
Tiglathpileser  I.  and  from  his  clays  on,  she  is  primarily  the  lady 
of  war,  who  arranges  the  order  of  battle  and   encourages  her 
favorites  to  fight.      She  appears  in  dreams  at  critical   moments, 
and  whispers  words  of  cheer  to   King   Ashurbanabal.      When 
danger    threatens,   it    is    to    her    that    the   great    king    spreads 
his  hands   in   prayer.      She   is  not  merely  the  goddess  of  the 
kings,  but  of  the  people  as  well.      The  latter  are  instructed  to 
honor  her.      No  deity  approaches  her  in   splendor.      As  Ashur 
rules  the    [gigi,  so    Ishtar  is  declared  to  be  '  mighty  over  the 
Anunnaki.'       Her    commands    are    not    to    be    opposed.       Her 
appearance   is  that   of  a  being  clothed   with    fiery   flames,  and 
streams  of   lire   are   sent    down    by   her   upon    the   enemies  of 
Ashurbanabal  —  a    description    that    expresses    admirably    the 
conception  formed   by  the   Assyrians  of  a  genuine  goddess  of 
war.       Like   Ashur,   she   is  given    a    supreme  rank  among  the 

1  Sir  above,  p.  83. 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  205 

gods.  Shalmaneser  II.  calls  her  the  first-born  of  heaven  and 
earth,  and  for  Tiglathpileser  I.,  she  is  the  first  among  the  gods. 
Her  milder  attributes  as  the  gracious  mother  of  creation,  the 
giver  of  plenty,  and  the  hearer  of  the  supplications  of  the  sinner, 
so  prominent  in  the  religious  literature,1  are  not  dwelt  upon  in 
the  historical  texts.  Still,  an  element  of  love  also  enters  into 
the  relationship  with  her  subjects.  Ashurnasirbal  (885-860  B.C.) 
speaks  of  her  as  the  lady  who  '  loves  him  and  his  priesthood.' 
Sennacherib  similarly  associates  Ishtar  with  Ashur  as  the  lover 
of  his  priesthood.  As  a  goddess  of  war  she  is  of  course  '  perfect 
in  courage,'  as  Shalmaneser  II.  declares.  Temples  are  erected 
to  her  in  the  city  of  Ashur,  in  Nineveh  and  Arbela.  Ashur- 
banabal  distinguishes  carefully  between  the  two  Ishtars,  —  the 
one  of  Nineveh  and  the  one  of  Arbela;  and,  strange  enough, 
while  terming  Nineveh  the  favorite  city  of  Ishtar,  he  seems  to 
give  the  preference  to  Ishtar  of  Arbela.  It  is  to  the  latter2  that 
when  hard  pressed  by  the  Elamites  he  addresses  his  prayer,  call- 
ing her  'the  lady  of  Arbela' ;  and  it  is  this  Ishtar  who  appears 
to  the  royal  troops  in  a  dream.  The  month  of  Ab  —  the 
fifth  month  of  the  Babylonian  calendar — is  sacred  to  Ishtar. 
Ashurbanabal  proceeds  to  Arbela  for  the  purpose  of  worship- 
ping her  during  this  sacred  period.  Something  must  have 
occurred  during  his  reign,  to  bring  the  goddess  of  Arbela  into 
such  remarkable  prominence,  but  even  Ashurbanabal  does  not 
go  so  far  as  to  place  Ishtar  of  Arbela  before  Ishtar  of  Nineveh, 
when  enumerating  the  gods  of  the  pantheon.  One  point  still 
remains  to  be  mentioned  before  passing  on.  Ashurbanabal 
calls  Ishtar  —  he  is  speaking  of  Ishtar  of  Nineveh  —  the  wife 
of  Bel.3    Now  Ishtar  never  appears  in  this  capacity  in  the  Baby- 

1  See  above,  pp.  S3,  84. 

2  Cylinder  B,  col.  v.  11.  30  scq.;  elsewhere  (Rassam  Cylinder,  col.  ii.  11.  115  scq.) 
he  prays  to  Ashur  and  Ishtar. 

3  Rassam  Cylinder,  col.  viii.  1.  92.  Elsewhere,  Cylinder  B,  col.  v.  17,  Ishtar  is 
called  the  daughter  of  Bel.  This,  however,  must  be  an  error;  either  Sin  must  be  read 
for  Bel,  or  khirat  (consort)  for  marat  (daughter). 


206  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Ionian  inscriptions.  If  there  is  one  goddess  with  whom  she 
has  nothing  in  common,  it  is  Belit  of  Nippur.  To  account 
for  this  curious  statement  on  the  part  of  the  Assyrian  scribes, 
it  is  only  necessary  to  bear  in  mind  that  the  name  Belit  signifies 
'  lady,'  and  Ishtar  is  constantly  spoken  of  as  the  Belit  or  lady 
of  battle.  Much  the  same  train  of  thought  that  led  to  regard- 
ing Bel  in  the  sense  of  '  lord,'  merely  as  a  title  of  Marduk,  gave 
rise  to  the  use  of  '  Belit,'  as  the  title  of  the  great  '  lady  '  of  the 
Assyrian  pantheon.1  From  this  it  is  but  a  small  — but  of  course 
erroneous  —  step,  to  speak  of  Belit-Ishtar  as  the  consort  of  Bel. 
Whether  the  error  is  clue  only  to  the  scribe,  or  whether  it  actu- 
ally made  its  way  into  the  Assyrian  system  of  theology,  it  is 
difficult  to  say.  Probably  the  former;  for  the  distinguishing 
feature -of  both  the  Babylonian  and  the  Assyrian  Ishtar  is  her 
independent  position.  Though  at  times  brought  into  close 
association  with  Ashur,  she  is  not  regarded  as  the  mere  consort 
of  any  god  —  no  mere  reflection  of  a  male  deity,  but  ruling  in 
her  own  right  on  a  perfect  par  with  the  great  gods  of  the  pan- 
theon. She  is  coequal  in  rank  and  dignity  with  Ashur.  Her 
name  becomes  synonymous  for  goddess,  as  Marduk  becomes 
the  synonym  for  god.  The  female  deities  both  native  and 
foreign  come  to  be  regarded  as  so  many  forms  of  Ishtar.  In 
a  certain  sense  Ishtar  is  the  only  real  goddess  of  the  later 
Assyrian  pantheon,  the  only  one  taking  an  active  part  in  the 
religious  and  political  life  of  the  people.  At  the  same  time  it 
is  to  be  noted  that  by  the  side  of  the  Assyrian  Ishtar,  the 
Babylonian  Ishtar,  especially  the  one  associated  with  Erech 
(or  Warka)  is  also  worshipped  by  the  monarehs  of  the  north. 
Esarhaddon  devotes  himself  to  the  improvement  of  the  old 
temple  at  Erech,  and  Ashurbanabal  prides  himself  upon  having 
rescued  out  of  the  hands  of  the  Elamites  a  statue  of  Ishtar  or 
Nana  of  Erech  that  had  been  captured  1635  years  previous.2 

1  Sec  above,  p.  151. 

1  See  Barton,  "  The  Semitic  Eshtar  Cult  "  (Hebraica,  x.  9-12). 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PAXTIIEON.  207 


Anu. 


Reference  has  already  been  made  to  the  antiquity  of  the  Anu 
cult  in  Assyria,  and  that  prior  to  the  time  that  the  city  of  Ashur 
assumes  the  role  of  mistress  of  the  northern  states,  Anu  stood 
at  the  head  of  the  pantheon,  just  as  theoretically  he  continued 
to  occupy  this  place  in  the  pantheon  of  the  south.  What  is 
especially  important,  he  had  a  temple  in  the  very  city  of  Ashur, 
whose  patron  god  succeeded  in  usurping  the  place  of  the  old 
'god  of  heaven.'  The  character  of  Anu  in  the  north  differs  in 
no  way  from  the  traits  assigned  to  him  in  the  south.  He  is 
the  king  of  the  Igigi  and  Anunnaki,  that  is,  of  all  the  heavenly 
and  earthly  spirits,  and  he  is  this  by  virtue  of  being  the  supreme 
god  of  heaven.  His  cult,  however,  appears  to  have  suffered 
through  the  overshadowing  supremacy  of  Ashur.  Even  in  his 
old  temple  at  Ashur,  which  Tiglathpileser  I.  on  the  occasion  of 
his  rebuilding  it,  tells  us  was  founded  641  years  before  this 
restoration,1  he  is  no  longer  accorded  sole  homage.  Ramman, 
the  god  of  thunder  and  of  storms,  because  correlated  to  Anu, 
is  placed  by  the  side  of  the  latter  and  permitted  to  share  the 
honors  with  Anu.2  Anu  survives  in  the  Assyrian  as  in  the  Baby- 
lonian pantheon  by  virtue  of  being  a  member  of  the  theological 
triad,  composed  as  we  have  seen  of  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea.  Tiglath- 
pileser I.  still  invokes  Anu  as  a  deity  of  practical  importance. 
He  associates  him  with  Ramman  and  Ishtar  as  the  great  gods 
of  the  city  of  Ashur  or  with  Ramman  alone,  but  beyond  an 
incidental  mention  by  Ashurnasirbal,  who  in  a  long  list  of  gods 
at  the  beginning  of  his  annals  emphasizes  the  fact  of  his  being 
the  favorite  of  Anu,  he  appears  only  in  combination  with  Bel 
and  Ea.  The  same  degree  of  reverence,  however,  was  shown 
to  the  old  triad  in  Assyria  as  in  Babylonia.  The  three  gods 
are  asked  not  to  listen  to  the  prayers  of  the  one  who  destroys 

1  I.e.,  c.  1800  b.c.  2  See  p.  154. 


20S  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

the  monuments  set  up  by  the  kings.  Sargon  tells  us  that  it  is 
Ami,  Bel,  and  Ea  who  fix  the  names  of  the  months,1  and  this 
same  king  when  he  comes  to  assign  names  to  the  eight  gates  of 
his  great  palace,  does  not  forget  to  include  Arm  in  the  list  of 
deities,-  describing  him  as  the  god  who  blesses  his  handiwork. 

Dagan. 

Coequal  in  antiquity  with  the  cult  of  Anu  in  Assyria  is  that 
of  Dagan.  Although  occurring  in  Babylonia  as  early  as  the 
days  of  Hammurabi,  and  indeed  earlier,'5  it  would  appear  that 
his  worship  was  imported  from  the  north  into  the  south.4  At 
all  events,  it  is  in  the  north  that  the  cult  of  Dagan  rises  to 
prominence.  The  name  of  the  god  appears  as  an  element  in 
the  name  of  Ishme-Dagan  (the  father  of  Samsi-Ramman  II.),6 
whose  date  may  be  fixed  at  the  close  of  the  nineteenth  century 
B.C.  The  form  Dagan  is  interesting  as  being  almost  identical 
with  the  name  of  the  chief  god  of  the  Philistines,  Dagon,6  who 
is  mentioned  in  the  Book  of  Judges.  The  resemblance  can 
hardly  be  entirely  accidental.  From  other  sources  we  know 
that  Dagan  was  worhipped  in  Palestine  as  early  as  the  four- 
teenth or  fifteenth  century,  and  the  form  Dagan,  if  derived 
from  Dag,  contains  an  afformative  element  which  stamps  the 
word  as  non-Assyrian.  The  proposition  has  much  in  its  favor 
which  regards  Dagan  as  a  god  whose  worship  was  introduced 
into  Assyria  at  a  very  early  period  through  the  influence  of 
Aramaean  hordes,  who  continue  throughout  Assyrian  history 
to  skirt  the  eastern  shores  of  the  Tigris.  Once  introduced, 
however,    into   Assyria,  Dagan    assumes   a  different   form   from 

1  See  above,  p.  149. 
-  See  below,  p.  237. 

:i  A  king  of  Nippur  (<-.  2500  B.C.)  bears  the  name  Ishme-Dagan. 
4  See  above,  p.  154  ;    Tiele,  Geschichte  der  Religion  hit  Alterthunt,  i.  172. 
•r'  See   Hommel,  Geschichte,  p.  pi  .     How  much  earlier  Samsi-Ramman  I.  reigned 
is  not  known       perhaps  only   (.0  or  50  years. 

6  The  0  of  Dagon  would  be  represented  by  d  in  cuneiform  writing. 


THE    ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  209 

the  one  that  he  receives  among  the  Philistines.  To  the  latter 
he  is  the  god  of  agriculture,  while  in  Assyria  he  rises  to  the 
rank  of  second  in  the  pantheon,  and  becomes  the  associate  of 
Anu.  The  latter's  dominion  being  the  heavens,  Dagan  is  con- 
ceived as  the  god  of  earth.  Hence,  there  results  the  fusion 
with  the  Babylonian  Bel,  which  has  already  been  noted,1  and 
it  is  due  to  this  fusion  that  Dagan  disappears  almost  entirely 
from  the  Assyrian  pantheon.  Ashurnasirbal  invokes  Dagan 
with  Anu.  Two  centuries  later,  Sargon,  whose  scribes,  as 
Jensen  has  noticed,  manifest  an  '  archaeological '  fondness  for 
the  earlier  deities,  repeats  the  phrase  of  Ashurnasirbal,  and 
also  calls  his  subjects  'troops  of  Anu  and  Dagan';  but  it  is 
important  to  observe  that  he  does  not  include  Dagan  among 
the  deities  in  whose  honor  he  assigns  names  to  the  gates  of 
his  palace.  We  may,  therefore,  fix  upon  the  ninth  century  as 
the  terminus  for  the  Dagan  cult  in  Assyria.  Proper  names 
compounded  with  Dagan  do  not  occur  after  the  days  of 
Ashurnasirbal.2 

Shamash. 

Besides  the  testimony  furnished  by  the  name  of  the  king, 
Samsi-Ramman,  we  have  a  proof  for  the  antiquity  of  the 
Shamash  cult  in  Assyria  in  the  express  statement  of  Pudilu 
(c.  1350  e.g.)  that  he  built  a  temple  to  the  sun-god  in  the  city 
of  Ashur.  He  calls  Shamash  the  '  protecting  deity,'  but  the 
protection  vouchsafed  by  Shamash  is  to  be  understood  in  a 
peculiar  sense.  Shamash  does  not  work  by  caprice.  He  is,  as 
we  have  seen,  preeminently  a  god  of  justice,  whose  favors  are 
bestowed  in  accordance  with  unchangeable  principles.  So  far 
as  Assyria  is  concerned,  the  conceptions  regarding  Shamash 
reach  a  higher  ethical  level  than  those  connected  with  any  other 
deity.     Ashur  and  Ishtar  are  partial   to   Assyria,  and  uphold 

1  See  p.  154. 

2  An  eponym  in  his  days  bears  the  name  Daganbelusur. 


210  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

her  rulers  at  any  cost,  but  the  favors  of  Shamash  are  bestowed 
upon  the  kings  because  of  their  righteousness,  or,  what  is  the 
same  thing,  because  of  their  claim  to  being  righteous.  For 
Tiglathpileser  I.,  great  and  ruthless  warrior  as  he  is,  Shamash 
is  the  judge  of  heaven  and  earth,  who  sees  the  wickedness  of 
the  king's  enemies,  and  shatters  them  because  of  their  guilt. 
When  the  king  mercifully  sets  certain  captives  free,  it  is  in  the 
presence  of  Shamash  that  he  performs  this  act.  It  is,  there- 
fore, as  the  advocate  of  the  righteous  cause  that  Tiglathpileser 
claims  to  have  received  the  glorious  sceptre  at  the  hands  of 
Shamash ;  and  so  also  for  the  successors  of  Tiglathpileser, 
down  to  the  days  of  Sargon,  Shamash  is  above  all  and  first  of 
all  the  judge,  both  of  men  and  of  the  gods.  There  is,  of 
course,  nothing  new  in  this  view  of  Shamash,  which  is  pre- 
cisely the  one  developed  in  Babylonia ;  but  in  Assyria,  per- 
haps for  the  reason  that  in  Shamash  is  concentrated  almost  all 
of  the  ethical  instinct  of  the  northern  people,  the  judicial  traits 
of  Shamash  appear  to  be  even  more  strongly  emphasized. 
Especially  in  the  days  of  Ashurnasirbal  and  Shalmaneser  II. 
-the  ninth  century — does  the  sun-cult  receive  great  promi- 
nence. These  kings  call  themselves  the  sun  of  the  world.  The 
phrase,1  indeed,  has  so  distinctly  an  Egyptian  flavor,  that,  in 
connection  with  other  considerations,  it  seems  quite  plausible 
to  assume  that  the  influence  of  Egyptian  reverence  for  Ra  had 
much  to  do  with  the  popularity  of  the  sun-cult  about  this  time. 
Shalmaneser  bestows  numerous  epithets  upon  Shamash.  He 
is  the  guide  of  everything,  the  messenger  of  the  gods,  the  hero, 
the  judge  of  the  world  who  guides  mankind  aright,  and,  what  is 
most  significant,  the  lord  of  law.  The  word  used  for  law, 
AW//,  is  identical  with  the  Hebrew  term  tora  that  is  used  to 
designate  the  Pentateuchal  legislation.  No  better  testimony 
could  be  desired  to  show  the  nature  of  the  conceptions  that 

1  In  the  El-Am. mi. i  tablets  (c.  1400  ti.c.)  the  governors  of  the  I'alestinean  states 
generally  address  their  Egyptian  lord  as  'my  sun.' 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  211 

must  have  been  current  of  Shamash.  Sargon,  again,  who  is 
fond  of  emphasizing  the  just  principles  that  inspire  his  acts, 
goes  to  the  length  of  building  a  sanctuary1  for  Shamash  far 
beyond  the  northern  limits  of  Assyria.  But  the  kings,  in  thus 
placing  themselves  under  the  protection  of  the  great  judge,  were 
not  oblivious  to  the  fact  that  this  protection  was  particularly 
desired  on  the  battlefield.  War  being  uppermost  in  their 
thoughts,  the  other  side  of  Shamash's  nature  —  his  power  and 
violence  —  was  not  overlooked.  Tiglathpileser  invokes  him 
also  as  the  warrior,  —  a  title  that  is  often  given  to  Shamash  in 
the  religious  literature.  There  can  be  little  doubt  that  a  nation 
of  warriors  whose  chief  deities  were  gods  of  war,  was  attracted 
to  Shamash  not  merely  because  he  was  the  judge  of  all  things, 
but  also,  and  in  a  large  degree,  because  he  possessed  some  of 
the  traits  that  distinguished  Ashur  and  Ishtar. 

Ramman. 

The  association  of  Ramman  with  Shamash  in  the  name  of 
the  old  ruler  of  Assyria,  Samsi-Ramman,  is  not  accidental  or 
due  to  mere  caprice.  Only  such  deities  are  combined  in 
proper  names  that  are,  or  may  be,  correlated  to  one  another. 
Ramman,  as  the  god  of  storms,  is  naturally  viewed  as  a  power 
complementary  to  the  great  orb  of  light.2  The  two  in  combina- 
tion, viewed  as  the  beneficent  and  the  destructive  power,  con- 
stitute the  most  powerful  elements  of  nature,  whose  good  will 
it  was  most  important,  especially  for  a  nation  of  warriors,  to 
secure.  Some  such  thought  surely  underlies  this  association 
of  Shamash  with  Ramman.  The  Assyrian  Ramman  differs  in 
no  way  from  the  Ramman  of  Babylonia,  but  he  is  much  more 
popular  in  the  north  than  in  the  south.  The  popularity  of  the 
god  is  but  a  reflection  of  the  delight  that  the  Assyrians  took 

1  Exactly  of  what  nature  we  do  not  know.  The  Assyrian  word  used,  Cylinder,  1. 
43,  is  obscure. 

2  See  p.  160. 


212  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

in  military  pursuits.  Ramman  is  hardly  anything  more  than 
another  Ashur.  Tiglathpileser  I.,  who  once  calls  the  god 
Mar-tu,  i.e.,  "the  West  god,"  l  has  left  us  an  admirable  descrip- 
tion of  him.  He  is  the  hero  who  floods  the  lands  and  houses 
of  the  country's  enemies.  The  approach  of  the  Assyrian 
troops  is  compared  to  an  onslaught  of  Ramman.  His  curses 
are  the  most  dreadful  that  can  befall  a  nation  or  an  individual, 
for  his  instruments  of  destruction  are  lightning,  hunger,  and 
death.  Reference  has  several  times  been  made  to  the  manner 
in  which  Tiglathpileser  honors  Ramman  by  making  him  a  part- 
ner of  Anu  in  the  great  temple  of  the  latter  at  Ashur.  But  the 
successors  of  Tiglathpileser  are  no  less  zealous  in  their  rever 
ence  for  Ramman.  It  is  to  Ramman  that  the  kings  offer 
sacrifices  during  the  campaign,  and  when  they  wish  to  depict 
in  the  strongest  terms  the  destruction  that  follows  in  the  wake 
of  an  onslaught  of  the  Assyrian  troops,  they  declare  that  they 
swept  over  everything  like  Ramman.  It  is  natural,  in  view  of 
this,  that  Ramman  should  have  been  to  the  Assyrians  also  the 
'mightiest  of  the  gods.'2  Through  the  Assyrian  inscriptions 
we  learn  something  of  the  consort  of  Ramman. 

Shala. 

Sennacherib  tells  us  that  in  the  course  of  his  campaign 
against  babylonia  he  removes  out  of  the  city  of  Babylon,  and 
replaces  in  Ekallate"'  the  statues  of  Ramman  and  Shala.  This, 
he  says,  he  did  418  years  after  the  time  that  they  had  been 
carried  captive  from  Ekallate  to  Babylon  by  Marduknadinakhi.4 
We  know  nothing  more  of  this  Ekallate  except  that  it  lay  in 
Assyria,  —  probably  in   the   southern  half,    -  and  that  Ramman 

1  [R. 8,  col.  i.  85.     See  above,  p.  (66. 

-  Ashurnasirbal  calls  him  s<>  in  his  annals.  <■.;,•..  col.  iii.  1.  1  50. 

3  Bavian  Inscription.  11.  4S-50.  See  also  Meissner-Rost,  Bauinst  In  i  ft  en  Sanlio  if  s. 
p.  102.  The  reading  of  the  name  of  the  city  is  not  certain.  It  signifies  'city  of 
palaces.'  4  f.  1 120  B.C. 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  213 

and  Shala  are  called  the  gods  of  the  city.  The  name  '  Shala ' 
appears  to  signify  '  woman.'  It  reminds  us,  therefore,  of  '  lady  ' 
(Ninni,  Nana.,  etc.),  which  we  have  found  to  be  the  designa- 
tion for  several  distinct  goddesses.  It  is  possible  that  Shala, 
likewise,  being  a  name  of  so  indefinite  a  character,  was  applied 
to  other  goddesses.  A  '  Shala  of  the  mountains,'  who  is  stated 
to  be  the  wife  of  Marduk,  is  mentioned  in  a  list  of  gods.1  The 
wife  of  Bel,  too,  is  once  called  Shala,  though  in  this  case  the 
confusion  between  Marduk  and  Bel  may  have  led  to  transfer- 
ring the  name  from  the  consort  of  one  to  the  consort  of  the 
other.  Too  much  importance  must  not  be  attached  to  the 
data  furnished  by  these  lists  of  gods.  They  represent  in 
many  cases  purely  arbitrary  attempts  to  systematize  the  Baby- 
lonian and  Assyrian  pantheon,  and  in  other  cases  are  valuable 
only  as  reflecting  the  views  of  the  theologians,  or  rather  of 
certain  schools  of  theological  thought,  in  Babylonia.  In  the 
religious  hymns,  too,  the  consort  of  Ramman  finds  mention, 
and  by  a  play  upon  her  name  is  described  as  the  '  merciful 
one.'  The  attribute  given  to  her  there  is  the  '  lady  of  the 
field,'  which  puts  her  in  contrast  to  Ramman,  rather  than  in 
partnership  with  him.  Since  we  hear  little  of  her  worship  in 
Assyria,  beyond  the  notices  of  Sennacherib,  we  may  conclude 
that,  like  so  many  goddesses,  Shala  dwindled  to  the  insignificant 
proportions  of  a  mere  pale  reflection  of  the  male  deity. 

Nin-ib. 

Another  god,  who  by  virtue  of  his  violent  traits  enjoys  the 
favor  of  the  Assyrian  rulers,  is  the  old  Babylonian  deity  whose 
name  is  provisionally  read  Nin-ib.  In  the  very  first  mention  of 
him,  in  the  inscription  of  Ashurrishishi  (c.  1150  B.C.),  he  is 
called  the  '  mighty  one  of  the  gods.'  Through  the  protection 
of  Nin-ib,  Ashurrishishi  secures  victory  over  his  enemies  on 

1  II  Rawlinson,  57,  33. 


214  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIA X   RELIGION 

all  sides.  'Similarly,  other  of  the  Assyrian  rulers  emphasize 
the  strength  of  Nin-ib.  Tiglathpileser  I.  calls  him  the  courage- 
ous one,  whose  special  function  is  the  destruction  of  the  king's 
enemies.  In  doing  so  he  becomes  the  god  '  who  fulfills  the 
heart's  desire.'  The  unmistakable  character  of  the  god  as  a 
god  of  war  is  also  shown  by  his  association  with  Ashur.1  If 
Ashur  is  the  king  of  Igigi  and  Anunnaki,  Nin-ib  is  the  hero  of 
the  heavenly  and  earthly  spirits.  To  him  the  rulers  fly  for 
help.  Of  all  the  kings,  Ashurnasirbal  seems  to  have  been 
especially  devoted  to  the  service  of  Nin-ib.  The  annals  of 
this  king,  instead  of  beginning,  as  is  customary,  with  an  invo- 
cation of  all  or  many  of  the  gods,  starts  out  with  an  address  to 
Nin-ib,  in  which  the  king  fairly  exhausts  the  vocabulary  of  the 
language  in  his  desire  to  secure  the  favor  of  this  powerful 
deity.  Almost  all  the  attributes  he  assigns  to  him  have  refer- 
ence to  the  god's  powers  in  war.  Dwelling  in  the  capital 
Calah,  he  is  '  the  strong,  the  mighty,  the  supreme  one,'  the 
perfect  hero,  who  is  invincible  in  battle,  the  '  destroyer  of  all 
opposition,  who  holds  the  lock  of  heaven  and  earth,  who  opens 
the  deep  ;  the  strong  one,  endowed  with  youthful  vigor,  whose 
decree  is  unchangeable,  without  whom  no  decision  is  made  in 
heaven  or  on  earth,  whose  attack  is  like  a  flood,  who  sweeps 
away  the  land  of  his  enemies,'  and  so  forth,  through  a  bewilder- 
ing array  of  epithets.  The  inscriptions  of  the  Assyrian  kings, 
especially  in  the  introductions,  manifest  little  originality.  One 
king,  or  rather  his  scribe,  frequently  copies  from  earlier  pro- 
ductions, or  imitates  them.  Hence,  it  happens  that  the  grand- 
son of  Ashurnasirbal,  Shamshi-Ramman  (c.  825-812  B.C.), 
furnishes  us  with  an  almost  equally  long  array  of  epithets, 
exalting  the  strength  and  terror  of  Nin-ib.  Like  Ashurnasir- 
bal, he  declared  himself  to  have  been  chosen  by  this  god  to 
occupy  the  throne.  A  comparison  of  the  two  lists  makes  it 
evident  that  the  later  one  is  modeled  upon  the  earlier  produc- 

'  So  Tiglathpileser  associates  Asian  and  Nin-ib,  ;is  tlm^L-  'who  fulfill  his  desire.' 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  215 

tion.      The  conclusion  is  justified  that  in  the  century  covered 
by   the    reigns   of   Ashurnasirbal x  and   Shamshi-Ramman,  the 
cult   of    Nin-ib   must   have   acquired   great   popularity,   though 
suffering,   perhaps,   an  interruption  during  the   reign   of  Shal- 
maneser    II.,  —  midway    between    these    two    kings,  —  whose 
favorite   we  have   seen   was  Shamash.     The   great  temple   of 
Nin-ib    stood    in    Calah,   which    Ashurnasirbal    chose    as    his 
official   residence,  and  it   was   in   this   temple    that    the    king 
deposited   a   long   inscription    commemorating  his   deeds.      In 
the  temple,  he  also  places  a  colossal  statue  of  the  god.     Upon 
the  completion  of  the  edifice,  he  dedicates  it  with  prayer  and 
sacrifices.     The  special  festivals  of  the  god  are  fixed  for  the 
months  of  Shabat  and  Ulul,  —  the  eleventh  and  sixth  months, 
—  and  provision  is  made  for  the  regular  maintenance  of  the 
cult.     It  must,  of  course,  not  be  supposed  that,  because  Nin-ib 
appears  to  be  a  favorite  of  the  king,  the  latter  concentrates  his 
attentions  upon  this  god.      He  appears  to   have  been  specially 
fond  of  temple  building,  and,  besides  the  one  to  Nin-ib,  he  tells 
us  of  sanctuaries  to  '  Belit  of  the  land,'  i.e.,  Ishtar,2  Sin,  Gula, 
Ea,  and  Ramman,  —  that  he  erects  or  improves.     One  might  be 
led  to  regard  it  as  strange  that  a  god  like  Nin-ib,  or  Shamash, 
should  claim  so  large  a  share  of  the  attention  of  the  Assyrian 
rulers,  to  the  apparent  neglect  of  Ashur,  but  it  must  be  borne 
in  mind  that  the  position  of  Ashur  was  so  assured  as  to  be 
beyond  the  reach  of  rivalry.      The  fact  also  that  Ashur's  popu- 
lar symbol  was  the  movable  standard  was  no  doubt  a  reason 
why  so  few  temples  were  erected  to  him.     He  did  not  stand  in 
need  of  temples.     For  the   very  reason   that  Ashur  was  the 
universally  acknowledged  master  of  everything,  the  kings  felt 
called  upon  to  choose,  by  the  side  of  Ashur,  some  additional 
deity,  —  a  patron  under  whose  special  protection  they  placed 
themselves.      The  natural  desire  for  novelty  —  together    with 

1  Ashurnasirbal's  father  bears  the  name  Tukulti-Ninib. 

2  See  above,  pp.  151.  206. 


216  BAB  YLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

other  circumstances  that  escape  us  —  led  one  to  choose  Ram- 
man,  another  Nin-ib,  a  third  Shamash,  and  a  fourth,  as  we 
shall  see,  Nabu.  In  doing  so  they  were  not  conscious  of  any 
lack  of  respect  towards  Ashur,  of  whose  good  will  they  always 
felt  certain. 

Besides  the  service  rendered  by  Nin-ib  in  war,  his  aid  was 
also  invoked  by  the  kings  in  their  recreations,  which  partook 
of  the  same  violent  character  as  their  vocation.  Their  favorite 
sport  was  hunting,  especially  of  lions,  wild  horses,  elephants, 
stags,  boars,  and  bulls.  They  either  proceeded  to  districts 
where  these  animals  were  to  be  found,  or  they  had  large  parks 
laid  out  near  their  residences,  which  were  then  stocked  with 
material  for  the  chase.  Ashurnasirbal  does  not  shun  a  long 
journey  to  distant  mountainous  regions  to  seek  for  sport,  and 
it  is  Nin-ib  whom  he  invokes,  together  with  Nergal.  These 
two,  he  declares,  who,  like  Ashur  and  Ishtar,  "  love  his  priest- 
hood," are  the  ones  that  convey  into  his  hands  the  hunting 
spoils.  Tiglathpileser  I.  was  especially  fond  of  lion  and  ele- 
phant hunting.  He  declares  that  on  one  occasion  he  killed 
10  elephants  and  920  lions  in  various  parts  of  northwestern 
Mesopotamia;  and  he  ascribes  his  success  to  Nin-ib,  who 
loves  him,  and  who,  again,  in  association  with  Nergal,  and 
Ashur,  has  placed  in  the  king's  hands  the  mighty  weapons 
and  the  glorious  bow.  After  the  days  of  Shamshi-Ramman  we 
hear  of  Nin-ib  chiefly  in  the  formal  lists  of  gods  which  the  later 
kings  of  Assyria,  from  Sargon  1  on,  are  fond  of  placing  at  the 
beginning  and  end  of  their  inscriptions.  These  lists,  again. 
copied  the  one  from  the  other,  are  of  value  only  as  indicating 
the  chief  gods  of  the  pantheon,  but  warrant  no  conclusions 
as  to  the  activity  reigning  in  the  cults  of  the  gods  there  men- 
tioned, before  leaving  Nin-ib  a  few  words  need  be  said  as  to 
his  relations  to  the  other  gods.  In  the  chapter  on  the  pantheon 
before    Hammurabi,2  the  identity  of  Nin-ib  with  the  chief  god 

1  One  oi  the  gates  oi  Sargon's  palace  is  called  after  Nin-ib.     2  See  above,  p.  57. 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  217 

of  Gudea's  district,  Nin-girsu,  has  been  pointed  out.  The 
solar  character  of  the  latter  being  clear,  it  follows  that  Nin-ib, 
too,  is  originally  a  personification  of  the  sun,  like  Nin-gish-zida 
and  Nin-shakh,  whose  roles  are  absorbed  by  Nin-ib.1  This 
has  long  been  recognized,  but  it  is  tthe  merit  of  Jensen ''  to 
have  demonstrated  that  it  is  the  east  sun  and  the  morning  sun 
which  is  more  especially  represented  by  Nin-ib.  On  this  sup- 
position, some  of  the  titles  given  to  him  in  the  inscriptions  of 
Ashurnasirbal  and  Shamshi-Ramman  become  perfectly  clear. 
Like  Marduk,  who,  it  will  be  remembered,  is  also  originally  a 
phase  of  the  solar  deity,  Nin-ib  is  called  the  first-born  of  Ea  ; 
and  as  the  rising  sun  he  is  appropriately  called  the  offspring  of 
Ekur,  —  i.e.,  the  earth,  —  in  allusion  to  his  apparent  ascent 
from  a  place  below  the  earth.  Ekur  and  Eshara  being  em- 
ployed as  synonyms,  Shamshi-Ramman  replaces  Ekur  by 
Eshara,  and  since  Bel  is  the  lord  of  Ekur-Eshara,  Nin-ib  also 
becomes  the  first-born  son  of  Bel.  Other  epithets,  such  as 
1  the  light  of  heaven  and  earth,'  '  the  one  who  pursues  his  path 
over  the  wide  world,'''5  are  all  in  keeping  with  the  solar  char- 
acter of  the  deity,  and  date,  therefore,  from  a  period  when  the 
more  purely  '  nature '  phases  of  the  god  were  dwelt  upon. 
But  just  as  in  the  case  of  Shamash  and  Nergal  (also,  as  we 
have  seen,  a  solar  deity),  so  in  that  of  Nin-ib,  the  violent, 
fiery,  and  destructive  character  that  the  sun  has  in  a  climate 
like  that  of  Babylonia  brought  it  about  that  Nin-ib  was  viewed 
as  a  destructive  force,  whose  assistance  was  of  great  value  in 
military  strife.  He  becomes  the  god  of  the  cloud  storm,  before 
whom,  as  he  passes  along,  heaven  and  earth  tremble.  By  his 
strong  weapon  he  humiliates  the  disobedient,  destroys  the  ene- 
mies of  the  kings,  and  grants  all  manner  of  protection  to  his 
favorites.     Only  in  the  religious  literature  are  other  qualities 

1  See  above,  pp.  92-94.  2  Kosmologk,  pp.  457-475. 

3  He  is  also  called  the  offspring  of  a  goddess,  Ku-tu-shar,  but  this  reference  is  not 
clear.     See  Jensen,  Kosmologie,  p.  46S,  note  5. 


218  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

dwelt  upon,  such  as  his  '  holiness.' ]     For  Hammurabi,  it  will 

be  recalled,  Nin-ib  is  already  the  god  of  war,  and  it  is  natural 
that  in  a  country  like  Assyria  this  side  of  the  god's  nature 
should  become  accentuated  to  the  point  of  obscuring  all 
others,  until  nothing  more  is  left  of  his  solar  character  than  is 
indicated  by  stray  bits  of  mythological  phrases,  perhaps  only 
half  understood,  and  introduced  to  add  to  the  imposing  array 
of  epithets  that  belong  to  the  terrible  god  of  war.  As  the 
consort  of  Nin-ib,  the  Assyrians  recognized 

GULA. 

She  is  only.occasionally  invoked  by  the  Assyrian  rulers.  A 
sanctuary  to  Gula,  as  the  consort  of  Nin-ib,  is  erected  by  Ashur- 
nasirbal,  and  a  festival  in  honor  of  the  goddess  is  referred  to 
by  Ashurbanabal. 

Nergal. 

Nergal  not  only  shares  with  Nin-ib,  as  already  mentioned, 
the  honor  of  being  the  god  under  whose  auspices  the  royal 
chase  is  carried  on,  but  he  is  also,  like  Nin-ib,  invoked  in  that 
other  sport  of  which  the  Assyrian  rulers  were  so  fond,  -  war. 
He  is  scarcely  differentiated  from  Nin-ib.  Like  the  latter  he 
is  the  perfect  king  of  battle,  who  marches  before  the  monarch 
together  with  Ashur,  and  he  is  pictured  as  carrying  the  mighty 
weapons  which  Ashur  has  presented  to  the  king.  In  an 
inscription  of  Shalmaneser  II.'2  there  is  an  interesting  refer- 
ence to  the  city  sacred  to  Nergal — Cuthah.  The  king,  who 
in  the  course  of  his  campaign  against  Babylonia  reaches 
Cuthah,  brings  sacrifices  to  Nergal,  whom  he  speaks  of  as  'the 
hero  of  the  gods,  the  supreme  raging  sun.'  A  later  king, 
Sargon,  also  honors  the  god  by  giving  a  fortress  in  the  distant 
land  of  Nairi,  to  the   northeast  of  Assyria,  the   name  of   Kars- 

i  In  a  religious  text  he  is  addressed  as  '  holy,  holy,  holy.' 

-  Balawat,  col.  v.  11.  4,  5.  3  Kar  =  fortress. 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  219 

Nergal.  It  would  seem  as  though,  through  the  influence  of 
Sargon,  a  revival  of  the  Nergal  cult  took  place.  His  successor, 
Sennacherib,  erects  a  temple  in  honor  of  the  god  at  Tarbisu, 
a  suburb  to  the  north  of  Nineveh  proper,  and  Ashurbanabal, 
who  dwells  at  Tarbisu  for  a  while,  is  engaged  in  adding  to  the 
beauty  of  the  edifice,  —  an  indication  of  the  honor  in  which  the 
god  continued  to  be  held.  Nergal's  consort  is  Laz,  but  she  is 
not  referred  to  by  the  Assyrian  rulers. 

Sin. 

The  old  Babylonian  moon-god  plays  a  comparatively  insignifi- 
cant role  in  Assyria.  Ashurnasirbal  speaks  of  a  temple  that  he 
founded  in  Calah  —  perhaps  only  a  chapel  —  in  honor  of  Sin. 
It  could  not  have  been  of  much  importance,  for  we  learn  noth- 
ing further  about  it.  Sargon,  too,  who  manifests  a  great  fond- 
ness for  reviving  ancient  cults,  erects  sanctuaries  to  Sin  along 
with  a  quantity  of  other  gods  in  his  official  residence  at  Khor- 
sabad  and  beyond  the  northeastern  confines  of  Assyria  at 
Magganubba.  But  when  invoked  by  the  kings,  Sin  shows 
traces  of  the  influence  which  the  conceptions  current  about 
Ashur  exerted  upon  his  fellow  deities.  He  takes  on,  as  other 
of  the  gods,  the  attributes  of  the  war-god.  Instead  of  being 
merely  the  lord  of  the  crescent,  as  in  Babylonia,  and  one  of 
the  sources  of  wisdom  because  of  the  connection  of  astrology 
with  lunar  observations,  he  is  pictured  as  capable  of  inspiring 
terror.  At  the  same  time  he  is  also  the  lord  of  plenty,  and 
in  his  capacity  as  the  wise  god  he  is  regarded  as  the  lord  of 
decisions.  But  by  the  side  of  new  epithets  that  are  attached 
to  him  in  the  Assyrian  inscriptions,  there  is  one  which,  just  as 
in  the  case  of  Nin-ib,  connects  the  Assyrian  Sin  cult  with  the 
oldest  phase  of  moon-worship  in  the  south.  It  is  one  of  the 
last  kings  of  Assyria,  Ashurbanabal,  who  calls  Sin  'the  first- 
born son  of  Bel.'     He  appears  in  this  relationship  to  Bel  in  the 


220  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION, 

religious  texts  of  Babylonia.  The  Bel  here  meant  can  only  be 
the  great  god  of  Nippur,  and  the  title  'son  of  Bel'  accordingly 
shows  that  the  moon-worship  of  Assyria  is  ultimately  derived 
from  that  which  had  its  seat  in  the  south.  Sin's  secondary 
position  is  indicated  by  making  him  a  son  of  Bel.  The  rise 
of  the  science  of  astronomy  in  connection  with  astrology, 
was,  as  already  suggested,  an  important  factor  in  spreading 
and  maintaining  the  Sin  cult  in  the  south,  while  the  lack  of 
intellectual  originality  in  Assyria  would  equally  account  for  the 
comparatively  subordinate  position  occupied  by  Sin  in  the 
Assyrian  pantheon. 

Nusku. 

That  Nusku  is  a  Babylonian  god,  meriting  a  place  in  the 
pantheon  of  Hammurabi,  if  not  of  the  days  prior  to  the  union 
of  the  Babylonian  states,  is  shown  by  the  fact  (i)  that  he  had  a 
shrine  in  the  great  temple  of  Marduk  at  Babylon,  along  with 
Nebo,  Tashmitum,  and  Ea  ; 1  and  (2 )  that  he  appears  in  the 
religious  texts.  In  view  of  this  it  might  appear  strange  that  we 
find  no  reference  to  the  god  in  historical  texts  till  we  reach  the 
Assyrian  period.  The  reason,  or  at  least  one  reason,  is  that 
Nusku  is  on  the  one  hand  amalgamated  with  Gibil,  the  fire-god, 
and  on  the  other  identified  with  Nabu.  The  compound  ideo- 
gram with  which  his  name  is  written  includes  the  same  sign  - 
the  stylus  or  sceptre — that  is  used  to  designate  Nabu,  the  sec- 
ond part  of  the  ideogram  adding  the  idea  of  'force  and  strength.' 
Whether  this  graphical  assimilation  is  to  be  regarded  as  a  fac- 
tor in  bringing  about  the  identification  of  Nusku  and  Nabu,  or 
is  due  to  an  original  similarity  in  the  traits  of  the  two  gods,  it 
is  difficult  to  say.  Hardly  the  latter,  for  Nusku  is  a  solar 
deity,  whereas,  as  we  have  tried  to  show,  Nabu  is  originally  a 
water-deity."     But   however  we  may  choose  to  account  for  it, 

1  See  Sayce,  Hibbert  Lectures,  p.  4^S,  and  Jensen's  important  note,  Rosmologie, 
pp.  492    f94.  -  See  pp.  124,  125. 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  221 

the  prominence  of  Nusku  is  obscured  by  Nabu.  As  a  solar 
deity,  it  is  easy  to  see  how  he  should  have  been  regarded  as  a 
phase  of  the  fire-god,  and  if  the  various  other  solar  deities  were 
not  so  regarded,  it  is  because  in  the  course  of  their  develop- 
ment they  were  clothed  with  other  attributes  that,  while  obscur- 
ing their  origin,  saved  them  from  the  loss  of  their  identity. 
Apart  from  the  formal  lists  of  gods  drawn  up  by  Sargon  and 
his  successors,  Shalmaneser  II.  and  Ashurbanabal  are  the  only 
kings  who  make  special  mention  of  Nusku.  The  former  calls 
him  the  bearer  of  the  brilliant  sceptre,  just  as  Nabu  is  so 
called;  and  again,  just  as  Nabu,  he  is  termed  the  wise  god. 
The  two  phases  of  the  ideogram  used  in  his  name — the  sceptre 
and  the  stylus  —  are  thus  united  in  the  personage  of  Nusku 
precisely  as  in  Nabu.  On  the  other  hand,  the  manner  in 
which  Ashurbanabal  speaks  of  him  reflects  the  mythological 
aspect  of  Nusku.  In  the  religious  literature  Nusku  is  the 
messenger  of  Bel-Marduk,  who  conveys  the  message  of  the 
latter  to  Ea.  From  being  the  messenger  of  Bel,  he  comes  to 
be  viewed  as  the  messenger  of  the  gods  in  general,  and  accord- 
ingly Ashurbanabal  addresses  him  as  '  the  highly  honored 
messenger  of  the  gods,'  but,  combining  with  the  mythological 
the  more  realistic  aspect  of  Nusku,  refers  to  him  also  as  the 
one  who  glorifies  sovereignty  and  who,  at  the  command  of  Ashur 
and  Belit,  stands  at  the  king's  side  to  aid  in  bringing  the  ene- 
mies to  fall.  As  for  the  fire-god  Gibil,  with  whom  Nusku  is 
identified,  we  have  merely  a  reference  to  a  month  of  the  year 
sacred  to  the  servant  of  Gibil  in  a  passage  of  the  inscriptions 
of  Sargon.1 

Bel-Marduk. 

From  the  time  that  the  Assyrian  rulers  claimed  a  greater  or 
small  measure  of  control  over  the  affairs  of  Babylonia,  that  is, 
therefore,  from  about  the  twelfth  century,  they  were  anxious  to 

1  Cylinder,  1.  6i. 


222  n.UiYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

make  good  their  claim  by  including  in  their  pantheon  the  chief 
god  of  Babylonia.  The  Assyrian  inscriptions  prove  that,  as 
early  as  the  twelfth  century,  the  theoretical  absorption  on  the 
part  of  Marduk,  of  the  role  taken  by  the  old  god  Bel  of  Nippur, 
which  was  enlarged  upon  in  a  preceding  chapter,1  had  already 
taken  place.  Marduk  is  not  only  frequently  known  as  Bel,  but 
what  is  more,  Babylonia  is  the  country  of  Bel,  or  simply  Bel, 
and  the  Babylonians  are  referred  to  as  '  the  subjects  of  Bel,'  or 
the  '  humanity  of  Bel.'  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  in  all  these 
cases  Bel-Marduk  is  meant  and  not  the  older  Bel.  In  the  days 
of  Ashurrishishi  we  already  come  across  the  title  '  governor  of 
Bel,'  that  to  the  latest  days  remains  the  official  designation  for 
political  control  over  the  southern  empire.  So  general  is  this 
use  of  Bel  for  Marduk  that  the  latter  name  does  not  occur  until 
we  reach  Shalmaneser  II.,  i.e.,  the  ninth  century.  There  seems 
to  be  no  reason  to  question,  therefore,  that  even  when  Tiglath- 
pileser  I.  applies  to  Bel  titles  that  certainly  belong  to  the  older 
Bel,  such  as  'father  of  the  gods,'  'king  of  all  the  Anunnaki,' 
1  who  fixes  the  decrees  of  heaven  and  earth,'  he  means  Marduk, 
a  proof  for  which  maybe  seen  in  the  epithet  Ml  matati,  '  lord  of 
lands,'  which  follows  upon  th«se  designations  and  which,  as  we 
saw,  is  a  factor  in  the  evolution  of  Marduk  into  Bel-Marduk.2 
The  importance  that  Tiglathpileser  I.,  and  therefore  also  his 
successors,  attached  to  their  control  over  the  old  southern  dis- 
trict, is  shown  by  his  according  to  Bel  the  second  place  in  the 
pantheon,  invoking  him  at  the  beginning  of  his  inscriptions 
immediately  after  Ashur.  The  control  over  Babylonia  was  an 
achievement  that  stirred  the  pride  of  the  Assyrian  rulers  to  the 
highest  degree.  Its  age  and  its  past  inspired  respect.  Besides 
being  the  source  of  the  culture  that  Assyria  possessed,  Baby- 
lonia had  sacred  associations  for  the  Assyrians,  as  the  original 

1  See  pp.  117 

-  We  may  therefore  expei  t,  sonic  day,  to  come  across  the  name  Marduk  in  Assyr- 
ian texts  earlier  than  the  ninth  century. 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  Ill 

dwelling-places  of  most  of  the  gods  worshipped  by  them.  The 
old  sacred  centers  like  Ur,  Nippur,  Uruk,  Sippar,  with  their 
great  temples,  their  elaborate  cults,  their  great  storehouses  of 
religious  literature,  and  their  great  body  of  influential  priests 
and  theologians  and  astrologers  were  as  dear  to  the  people 
of  the  north  as  to  those  of  the  south  ;  and  in  proportion  as 
these  old  cities  lost  their  political  importance,  their  rank  as 
sacred  centers  to  which  pilgrimages  were  made  on  the  occasion 
of  the  festivals  of  the  gods  was  correspondingly  raised.  Hence 
the  value  that  the  Assyrian  rulers  attached  to  the  possession  of 
Babylonia.  They  do  not  like  to  be  reminded  that  they  rule  the 
south  by  force  of  arms.  They  prefer,  as  Tiglathpileser  I. 
declares,  to  consider  themselves  '  nominated  by  the  gods  to  rule 
over  the  land  of  Bel.'  They  want  to  be  regarded  as  the  favor- 
ites of  Bel,  and  they  ascribe  to  him  the  greatness  of  their  rule. 
It  is  he  who  fulfills  the  wishes  of  the  kings;  and  when  the  kings 
enter  upon  a  campaign  against  Babylonia,  as  they  frequently 
did  to  quell  the  uprisings  that  were  constantly  occurring  in  the 
one  or  the  other  of  the  southern  districts,  they  emphasize,  as 
Shalmaneser  II.  does,  that  he  enters  upon  this  course  at  the 
command  of  Marduk.  They  set  themselves  up  as  Marduk's 
defenders,  and  it  must  be  said  for  the  Assyrian  rulers  that  they 
were  mild  and  sparing  in  their  treatment  of  their  southern  sub- 
jects. They  do  not  practise  those  cruelties  —  burning  of  cities, 
pillage,  and  promiscuous  slaughter — that  form  the  main  feature 
in  their  campaigns  against  the  nations  to  the  northeast  and 
northwest,  and  against  Elam.  They  accord  to  the  Babylonians  as 
much  of  the  old  independence  as  was  consistent  with  an  impe- 
rial policy.  The  internal  affairs  continue  for  a  long  time  to  be 
regulated  by  rulers  who  are  natives  of  Babylonia,  and  it  is  not 
until  a  comparatively  late  day  —  the  time  of  Sennacherib  — 
that  in  consequence  of  the  endless  trouble  that  these  native 
rulers  gave  the  Assyrians  through  their  constant  attempt  to 
make  themselves   independent,    it  became   customary   for   the 


224  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Assyrian  kings  to  appoint  a  member  of  the  royal  house  —  a  son 
or  brother  — to  the  lieutenancy   over  Babylonia.     As  for  the 
cult,  the  Assyrian  kings  were  at  great  pains  to  leave  it  undis- 
turbed, or  where  it  had  been  interrupted  to  restore  it,  and  thus 
secure  the  favor  of  the  southern  gods.     So  Shalmaneser  II. 
upon  the  completion  of  his  campaign  enters   Marduk's  great 
temple  at   Babylon,  E-sagila,  and  offers  prayers  and  sacrifices 
to  Bel  and  Belit,  i.e.,  Marduk  and  Sarpanitum.     From  E-sagila 
he  crosses  over  to  Borsippa,  and  pays  homage  to  Nabu  and  to 
Nabu's  consort,  whom  he  calls  Nana..1     The  kings   are  fond, 
especially  when  speaking  of  the  Babylonian  campaigns,  of  slip- 
ping in  the  name  of  Marduk  after  that  of  Ashur.      With   the 
help  of  Ashur  and  Marduk  their  troops  are  victorious.     Marduk 
shares  Ashur's  terrible  majesty.     At  times  Shamash,  or  Sham- 
ash  and  Ramman,  are  added  to  form  a  little  pantheon  whose 
assistance    is    invoked  in   the   Babylonian   wars.      From   being 
used  in  restricted  application  to  Babylonian  affairs,  Ashur  and 
Marduk  came  to  be  invoked  in  a  general  way.      Esarhaddon  ex- 
pressly sets  up  the  claim  of  being  the  savior  of  Marduk's  honor, 
as  a  kind  of  apology  for  proceeding  against  Babylonia  with  his 
armies.     Sargon,  to  emphasize  his  legitimate  control  over  Baby- 
lonia as  well  as  Assyria,  says  that  he   has  been  called  to  the 
throne  by  Ashur  and   Marduk,  but  Ashurbanabal  goes  further 
even  than   his  predecessors.     He  proceeds  to  Babylon  on  the 
occasion  of  the  formal  installation  of  his  brother  Shamashshum- 
ukin  as  viceroy  of  the  district,  enters  the  temple  of  Marduk, 
whom  he  does  not  hesitate  to  call  'the  lord  of  lords,'  performs 
tin;  customary  rites,  and  closes  the  ceremonies  by  a  fervent 
prayer  to   Marduk  for  his  continued  good  will  and  blessing.2 
The  great  gods   Nergal,  Nabu,  and  Shamash  come  from  their 
respective  shrines  to  do  homage  to  Marduk.      Ashurbanabal's 

1  See  p.  132. 

2  So  also  Shalmaneser  II.,  Obelisk,  1.  179,  unless   Marduk  here  is  an  error  for 
Ramman,  cf.  1.  175. 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  225 

brother  Shamashshumukin,  when  he  attempts  as  governor  of 
Babylon  to  make  himself  independent  of  his  brother,  endeavors 
by  means  of  sacrifices  and  other  devices  to  secure  the  favor  of 
Marduk,  well  aware  that  in  this  way  he  will  also  gain  the  sup- 
port of  the  Babylonians.  On  another  occasion,  incidental  to  a 
northern  campaign,  Ashurbanabal  mentions  that  the  day  on 
which  he  broke  up  camp  at  Damascus  was  the  festival  of  Mar- 
duk,—  an  indication  that  the  Babylonian  god  was  in  his  thoughts, 
even  when  he  himself  was  far  away  from  Babylonia.  Esarh ad- 
don and  Ashurbanabal,  when  approaching  the  sun-god  to  obtain 
an  oracle,  make  mention  of  Marduk  by  the  side  of  Shamash. 
There  are,  however,  a  number  of  passages  in  the  Assyrian 
inscriptions  in  which  when  Bel  is  spoken  of,  not  Marduk  but 
the  old  god  Bel  is  meant. 

Bel. 

Tiglathpileser  I.  tells  us  that  he  rebuilt  a  temple  to  Bel  in 
the  city  of  Ashur,  and  he  qualifies  the  name  of  the  god  by 
adding  the  word  '  old  '  to  it.  In  this  way  he  evidently  distin- 
guished the  god  of  Nippur  from  Bel-Marduk,  similarly  as  Ham- 
murabi in  one  place  adds  Dagan  to  Bel,1  to  make  it  perfectly 
clear  what  god  he  meant.  Again,  it  is  Sargon  who  in  consist- 
ent accord  with  his  fondness  for  displaying  his  archaeological 
tastes,  introduces  Bel,  the  'great  mountain,  'the  lord  of  coun- 
tries,' who  dwells  in  E-khar-sag-kurkura,  i.e.,  the  sacred  moun- 
tain on  which  the  gods  are  born,  as  participating  in  the  fes- 
tival that  takes  place  upon  the  dedication  of  the  king's  palace 
in  Khorsabad.  The  titles  used  by  the  king  are  applicable  only 
to  the  old  Bel,  but  whether  he  or  his  scribes  were  fully  conscious 
of  a  differentiation  between  Bel  and  Bel-Marduk,  it  is  difficult 
to  say.  Bel  is  introduced  in  the  inscription  in  question  2  imme- 
diately after  Ashur,  and  one  is  therefore  inclined  to   suspect 

1  See  above,  p.  146. 

2  The  so-called  Prunkinschrift,  11.  174  seq. 


226  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

that  Sargon's  archaeological  knowledge  fails  him  at  this  point 
in  speaking  of  the  old  Bel,  whereas  he  really  meant  to  invoke 
the  protection  of  Bel-Marduk  as  the  chief  god  of  his  most  im- 
portant possession  next  to  Assyria.1  Besides  this,  the  old  Bel 
is  of  course  meant,  when  associated  with  Anu,  as  the  powers 
that,  together  with  Belit,  grant  victory,"  or  as  a  member  of  the 
old  triad,  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea,  whose  mention  we  have  seen  is  as 
characteristic  of  the  Assyrian  inscriptions  as  of  the  Babylonian. 
Lastly,  Sargon  calls  one  of  the  gates  of  his  palace  after  Bel, 
whom  he  designates  as  the  one  who  lays  the  foundation  of  all 
things.     In  this  case,  too,  the  old  Bel  is  meant. 

Belit. 

In  the  case  of  Belit  a  curious  species  of  confusion  confronts 
us  in  the  Assyrian  inscriptions.  At  times  Belit  appears  as  the 
wife  of  Bel,  again  as  the  consort  of  Ashur,  again  as  the  consort 
of  Ea,  and  again  simply  as  a  designation  of  Ishtar.3  To 
account  for  this  we  must  bear  in  mind,  as  has  already  been 
pointed  out,  that  just  as  Bel  in  the  sense  of  lord  came  to  be 
applied  merely  as  a  title  of  the  chief  god  of  Babylonia,  so  Belit 
as  '  lady '  was  used  in  Assyria  to  designate  the  chief  goddess. 
This  was,  as  the  case  may  be,  either  Ishtar  or  the  pale  '  reflec- 
tion' associated  with  Ashur  as  his  consort.  Now  this  Belit,  as 
the  wife  of  Ashur,  absorbs  the  qualities  that  distinguish  Belit, 
the  wife  of  Bel-Marduk.  The  temple  in  the  city  of  Ashur,  which 
Tiglathpileser  1. 4  enriches  with  presents  consisting  of  the  images 
of  the  deities  vancpuished  by  the  king,  may  in  reality  have  been 
sacred  to  the  Belit  of  Babylonia,  but  Tiglathpileser,  for  whom 
Bel  becomes  merely  a  designation  of  Marduk,  does  not  feel 
called  upon  to  pay  his  devotions  to  the  Babylonian  Sarpanitum, 

1  Note  the  frequent  use  of  Ashur  and  Bel  for  Assyria  anil  Babylonia. 

2  Ashurbanabal,  Rassam  Cylinder,  col.  i.\.  11.  76,  77. 

3  See  above,  p.  205. 

i  IK.  ii.col.iv.  11.  34,35. 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  Ill 

and  so  converts  the  old  Belit  into  '  the  lofty  wife,  beloved  of 
Ashur.'  Sargon,  on  the  other  hand,  who  calls  one  of  the  gates 
of  his  palace  Belit  i/dui, '  mistress  of  the  gods,'  seems  to  mean  by 
this,  the  consort  of  Ea.1  Similarly,  Ashurbanabal  regards  Belit 
as  the  wife  of  Ashur,  and  himself  as  the  offspring  of  Ashur  and 
Belit.  At  the  same  time  he  gives  to  this  Belit  the  title  of 
'  mother  of  great  gods,'  which  of  right  belongs  to  the  consort 
of  the  Babylonian  Bel.  In  the  full  pantheon  as  enumerated  by 
him,  Belit  occupies  a  place  immediately  behind  her  consort 
Ashur.  Ashurbanabal,  however,  goes  still  further,  and,  influ- 
enced by  the  title  of  'Belit'  as  applied  to  Ishtar,  makes  the 
latter  the  consort  of  Ashur.  This  at  least  is  the  case  in  an 
inscription  from  the  temple  of  Belit  at  Nineveh,2  known  as  E- 
mash-mash,  and  in  which  Ashurbanabal  alternately  addresses 
the  goddess  as  Belit  and  as  Ishtar,  while  elsewhere3  this  same 
Belit,  whose  seat  is  in  E-mash-mash,  is  termed  the  consort  of 
Ashur.  How  Ashurbanabal  or  his  scribes  came  to  this  con- 
fusing identification  we  need  not  stop  to  inquire.  In  part,  no 
doubt,  it  was  due  to  the  general  sense  of  'goddess,'  which 
Ishtar  began  to  acquire  in  his  days.4  At  all  events,  Ashur- 
banabal's  conception  marks  a  contrast  to  the  procedure  of 
Shalmaneser  II.,  who  correctly  identifies  the  mother  of  the 
great  gods  with  the  wife  of  Bel.5  On  the  other  hand,  the 
confusion  that  took  place  in  Ashurbanabal's  days  is  fore- 
shadowed by  the  title  of  '  Belit  mati,'  i.e., '  mistress  of  the  land,' 
by  which  Ashurbanabal  appears  to  designate  some  other  than 
Ishtar.6  Lastly,  it  is  interesting  to  note  that  Ashurbanabal 
recognizes  by  the  side  of  Belit-Ishtar,  the  wife  of  Ashur,  the 
older  Belit,  the  wife  of  the  Bel  of  Nippur,  to  whom,  in  associa- 

1  See  below,  pp.  231,  237. 

2  Rawlinson,  ii.  66. 

3  Rassam  Cylinder,  col.  x.  11.  25-27. 

*  See  Tiele,  Babyl.-Assyr.  Gcschichte,  p.  127. 

5  Obelisk,  1.  52. 

6  Annals,  col.  ii.  1.  135. 


2 2S  A.4  #  FZ.  0 NIA  N-A SS  YRIAN  R E I.  IG ION. 

tion   with   Anu   and    Bel,    he   attributes   his   victory  over    the 
Arabs.1 

Sarpanitum. 

The  consort  of  Marduk  is  only  incidentally  referred  to : 
once  by  Sargon,2  who  groups  Bel  with  Sarpanitum  and  Nabu 
and  Tashmitum,  at  the  head  of  the  gods  of  Babylonia  ;  and 
similarly  by  Tiglathpileser  III.,  on  the  occasion  of  his  enumer- 
ating the  chief  gods  of  the  Babylonian  pantheon. 

Nabu. 

The  intimate  association  of  Nabu  with  Marduk  in  the  city  of 
Babylon  leads  as  a  natural  consequence  to  a  similar  associa- 
tion in  Assyria,  when  once  the  Marduk  cult  had  for  political 
reasons  become  established  in  the  north.  The  kings  invoke 
the  favor  of  Bel  (meaning  Marduk)  and  Nabu,  especially  when 
dealing  with  the  affairs  of  Babylonia,"  as  they  invoke  Ashur 
and  Ishtar.  Just  as  we  have  certain  kings  devoted  to  Nin-ib 
and  Shamash  by  the  side  of  Ashur,  so  there  are  others  whose 
special  favorite  is  Nabu.  In  the  days  of  Ramman-nirari  III. 
(812-783  B.C.)  the  Nabu  cult  reached  its  highest  point  of  popu- 
larity in  Assyria.  From  the  manner  in  which  the  king  speaks 
of  the  god,  one  might  draw  the  conclusion  that  he  attempted  to 
concentrate  the  whole  Assyrian  cult  upon  that  god  alone.  He 
erects  a  temple  to  the  god  at  Calah,  and  overwhelms  the  deity 
with  a  great  array  of  titles.  The  dedicatory  inscription  which 
the  king  places  on  a  statue  of  Nebo  closes  with  the  significant 
words,  '  ()  Posterity!  trust  in  Nabu.  Trust  in  no  other  god.'4 
Still  we  must  not  press  such  phrases  too  hard.  Ramman-nirari 
III.    had    no  intention  of  suppressing   Ashur  worship,   for  he 

1  Rassam  Cylinder,  col.  x.  1.  75. 

2  Prunkinschrifty  1.  143. 

3  Esarhaddon,  IR.  46,  col.  ii.  1.  4S ;  Rawlinson,  iii.  16,  col.  iii.  1.  24. 

4  IR.35,  no.  2,  1.  12. 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  229 

mentions  the  god  elsewhere,  and  assigns  to  him  the  same  rank 
as  the  other  kings  do,  but  so  much  we  are  justified  in  conclud- 
ing, that  next  to  Ashur  and  Ishtar  he  feels  most  strongly 
attached  to  Nabu.  That  the  Babylonian  Nabu  is  meant,  is  clear 
from  such  designations  as  '  the  offspring  of  E-sagila,  the  favorite 
of  Bel,'  'he  who  dwells  at  E-zida,'  which  appear  among  the 
epithets  bestowed  upon  the  god  ;  and  the  temple  in  Calah,  which 
one  of  the  last  kings  of  Assyria,  Ashuretililani,1  is  engaged  in 
improving,  bears  the  same  name  E-zida,  as  Nabu's  great  temple 
at  Borsippa.  We  have  already  set  forth  the  reasons  2  for  the 
popularity  of  the  Nabu  cult  in  Assyria.  Suffice  it  to  recall  that 
the  peculiar  character  of  the  god  as  the  patron  of  wisdom  placed 
him  beyond  the  reach  of  any  jealousy  on  the  part  of  the  other 
members  of  the  pantheon.  So  Ramman-nirari  III.  extols  Nabu 
as  the  protector  of  the  arts,  the  all-wise  who  guides  the  stylus  of 
the  scribe,  and  the  possessor  of  wisdom  in  general.  He  is  not 
merely  the  originator  of  writing,  but  the  source  of  all  wisdom, 
and  for  this  reason  he  is  spoken  of  as  the  son  of  Ea.  Attri- 
butes of  mere  brutal  force  are  rarely  assigned  to  Nabu,  but  as 
befits  a  god  of  wisdom,  mercy,  nobility,  and  majesty  constitute 
his  chief  attractions.  By  virtue  of  his  wisdom,  Sargon  calls 
him  '  the  clear  seer  who  guides  all  the  gods,'  and  when  the  last 
king  of  Assyria  —  Saracus,  as  the  Greek  writers  called  him  — 
invokes  Nabu  as  the  '  leader  of  forces,'  he  appears  to  have  in 
mind  the  heavenly  troops  rather  than  earthly  armies.  Such 
patrons  of  learning  as  Sargon  and  Ashurbanabal  were  naturally 
fond  of  parading  their  devotion  to  Nabu.  The  former  signifi- 
cantly calls  him  the  '  writer  of  everything,'  and  as  for  Ashur- 
banabal, almost  every  tablet  in  the  great  literary  collection  that 
he  made  at  Nineveh  closes  with  a  solemn  invocation  to  Nabu 
and  his  consort  Tashmitum,  to  whom  he  offers  thanks  for  hav- 
ing opened  his  ears  to  receive  wisdom,  and  who  persuaded  him 

1  IR.  8,  no.  3,  11.  5  seq. 

2  See  above,  p.  126. 


230  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

to  make  the  vast  literary  treasures  of  the  past  accessible  to  his 
subjects. 

Tashmitum. 

The  consort  of  Nabu  was  permitted  to  share  the  honors  in 
the  temple  of  Nabu  at  Calah,  but  beyond  this  and  Ashurban- 
abal's  constant  association  of  Tashmitum  with  Nabu  in  the 
subscript  to  his  tablets,  she  appears  only  when  the  kings  of 
Assyria  coming  to  Babylonia  as  they  were  wont  to  do,1  in  order 
to  perform  sacrifices,  enumerate  the  chief  gods  of  the  Babylo- 
nian pantheon. 

Ea. 

Ea  takes  his  place  in  the  Assyrian  pantheon  in  the  double 
capacity  of  god  of  wisdom  and  as  a  member  of  the  old  triad. 
Ashurnasirbal  makes  mention  of  a  sanctuary  erected  to  the 
honor  of  Ea  in  Ashur.  A  recollection  of  the  role  that  Ea  plays 
in  Babylonian  mythology  survives  in  the  titles  of  'creator'  and 
'  king  of  the  ocean,'  which  Shalmaneser  gives  him,2  and  of  the 
'  one  who  opens  the  fountains '  as  Ashurbanabal  declares.3 
He  is  also,  as  in  Babylonia,  the  one  who  determines  the  fates 
of  mankind.  As  the  one  who  has  a  care  for  the  arts,  he  is  the 
wise  god,  just  as  Nabu,  and  under  various  titles,  as  Nu-gim- 
mud,4  Nin-igi-azag,  and  Igi-dug-gu/'  all  emphasizing  his  skill, 
he  is  the  artificer  who  aids  the  kings  in  their  building  opera- 
tions. The  similarity  of  the  roles  of  Nabu  and  Ea,  as  gods  of 
wisdom  and   the   arts,   might    easily  have  led   to  a  confusion. 

1  E.g.,  Tiglathpileser  III.,  Nimrud  inscription  (Layard,  pi.  17, 1.  12). 

2  Obelisk.  1.  5. 

:i  Rassam  Cylinder,  col.  i.  1.  45. 

4  Delitzsch  (Das  Babylonische  Weltschopfungsepos,  p.  99)  questions  whether  Nu- 
gim-mud  (or  Nu-dim-mud)  was  originally  a  designation  of  Ea.  Nu-dim-mud  bring 
an  epithet  might,  of  course,  l>e  applied  to  other  gods,  but  there  can  be  no  doubt  that 
it  was  used  to  designate  more  particularly  Ea  as  the  artificer.  See  my  remarks, 
pp.  138,  177  seq. 

6  Meissner-Rost,  Bauinscriften  Sanhcrib's,  p.  105. 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  231 

Fortunately,  the  grandiloquent  and  all-embracing  titles  accorded 
to  the  former  did  not  alter  his  character  as  essentially  the  god 
who  presides  over  the  art  of  writing,  while  Ea  retains  the  con- 
trol over  the  architectural  achievements,  —  the  great  colossi,  in 
the  first  instance,  that  guarded  the  approach  of  palaces,  the 
images  of  the  gods  in  the  second,  and  the  temples  and  palaces 
in  general  as  his  third  function. 

Damkina. 

Of  the  consort  of  Ea,  it  is  sufficient  to  note  that  she  is  occa- 
sionally referred  to  in  the  historical  texts  of  the  Assyrian 
period.  In  the  inscriptions  of  Sargon  she  appears  under  the 
rather  strange  title  of  'Belit  ilani,'  i.e.,  the  mistress  of  the  gods.1 
This  '  mistress  '  cannot  be,  as  might  at  first  blush  appear, 
Ishtar  or  the  old  Belit,  for  elsewhere  2  Ishtar,  Belit,  and  Belit 
ilani  occur  side  by  side.  Sargon  declares  that  he  owes  his 
wisdom  to  Ea  and  Belit  ilani.  In  naming  the  gates  of  his 
palace,  he  again  associates  Ea  with  '  the  mistress  of  the  gods,' 
from  which  it  is  clear  that  the  epithet  is  used  of  Ea's  consort. 

NlN-GAL. 

A  sanctuary  to  the  old  Babylonian  goddess  Nin-gal  is  included 
by  Sargon  among  the  holy  edifices  erected  by  him  in  his  official 
residence.3 

DlBBARRA. 

We  have  pointed  out  in  a  previous  chapter  how  faint  the 
dividing  line  sometimes  becomes  between  gods  and  spirits. 
Among  the  minor  deities,  ranking  hardly  above  demons,  is  the 

1  Cylinder,  I.  4S,  ideographically  as  Nin-men-an-na,  '  lady  of  the  heavenly  crown.' 
In  the  parallel  passage,  however,  as  Lyon  (Sargontexte,  p.  71)  points  out,  Belit  ilani 
is  used. 

2  Cylinder,  1.  70. 

3  Cylinder,  1.  68. 


232  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

plague-god,  whose  name  may  provisionally  be  read  Dibbarra.1 
The  god  plays  a  role  in  some  of  the  ancient  legends  of  Baby- 
lonia. Remains  have  been  found  of  a  kind  of  epic  in  which 
Dibbarra  is  the  chief  personage.2  In  the  historical  texts  lit- 
is once  incidentally  mentioned  by  Ashurbanabal,  who  in  the 
course  of  his  campaign  against  Babylonia3  describes  how  the 
corpses  of  those  killed  by  Dibbarra,  i.e.,  through  hunger  and 
want,  filled  the  streets  of  the  cities.  Evidently  Dibbarra  here  is 
a  mere  personification  of  the  dreadful  demon  of  want  that  so 
often  follows  in  the  wake  of  a  military  destruction.  Still  there 
can  be  no  doubt  that  at  one  time  he  was  regarded  as  a  real 
deity,  and  not  merely  a  spirit  or  demon.  Dibbarra  is  identified 
in  the  theological  system  of  Babylonia  with  Nergal. 

Damku,   Sharru-ilu,  and  Sha-nit(?)-ka. 

In  an  interesting  passage  recounting  the  restoration  of  the 
city  Magganubba,  Sargon  4  says  that  he  prayed  to  Damku,  i.e., 
'grace,'  Sharru-ilu,  i.e., '  king-god,'  and  Sha-nit(?)-ka.  The  two 
former  he  calls  the  judges  of  mankind.  That  Damku  and 
Sharru-ilu  are  titles  and  not  names  is  evident  from  the  mean- 
ing of  the  words,  but  at  present  it  is  impossible  to  say  what 
gods  are  meant.''  Perhaps  that  these  are  the  translations  of 
names  of  the  old  deities  of  Magganubba.  We  have  at  least  one 
other  example  of  a  foreign  deity  introduced  into  the  Assyrian 
pantheon.  At  Dur-ilu,  a  town  lying  near  the  Elamitic  frontier, 
there  flourished  the  cult  of  Ka-di,6  evidently  a  god  imported 
into  the  Assyrian  pantheon  from  Elam  or  some  other  eastern 
district.      Saigon's  scribes  are  fond  of  translating  foreign  names 

1  Jensen.  Kosmologie,  p.  445,  reads  the  name  (in  a.      See  pp.  527-28. 

-  See  the  author's  work  on  A  Fragment  of  the  Dibbarra  Epic.  (Ginn  &  Co., 
Boston,  1 89] ). 

:;  Rassam  Cylinder,  col.  iv.  11.  79  seq.  *  Cylinder,  11.  44-53. 

•r'  Delitzsch's  supposition  (see  I. yon,  Sargontexte,  p.  ;i)  that  Sharru-ilu  is  [zdubar 
is  untenable. 

,;  Babyl.  Chronicle,  col.  iii.  1.  44. 


THE   ASSYRIAN  PANTHEON.  233 

and  words,  and  they  may  have  done  so  in  this  case,  and  thus 
added  two  new  deities  to  the  glorious  pantheon  protecting  their 
royal  chief.  As  for  Sha-nit(?)-ka,1  were  it  not  that  she  is 
called  the  mistress  of  Nineveh,  one  would  also  put  her  down  as 
a  foreign  goddess.  In  view  of  this,  however,  it  may  be  that 
Sha-nit(?)-ka  is  an  ideographic  designation  of  Ishtar. 

Before  leaving  the  subject,  a  word  needs  to  be  said  regarding 
the  relation  between  the  active  Assyrian  pantheon  and  the 
long  lists  of  deities  prepared  by  the  schoolmen  of  Babylonia 
and  Assyria.  Reference  has  already  been  made  to  these  lists.2 
They  vary  in  character.  Some  of  them  furnish  an  index  of  the 
various  names  under  which  a  god  was  known,3  or  the  titles 
assigned  to  him.  These  names  and  titles  are  frequently  indi- 
cations that  some  great  god  has  absorbed  the  attributes  of 
smaller  ones,  whose  independence  was  in  this  way  destroyed. 
Other  lists4  are  simple  enumerations  of  local  deities,  and  when 
to  these  names  some  indications  are  added,  as  to  the  locality 
to  which  the  gods  belong,5  their  importance  is  correspondingly 
increased.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  most  of  these  lists 
were  prepared  on  the  basis  of  the  occurrence  of  these  gods  in 
texts,  and  it  seems  most  plausible  to  conclude  that  the  texts  in 
question  were  of  a  religious  character.  References  to  local 
cults  are  numerous  in  the  incantations  which  form  a  consider- 
able proportion  of  the  religious  literature,  while  in  hymns  and 
prayers,  gods  are  often  referred  to  by  their  titles  instead  of  their 
names.  In  some  respects,  however,  these  lists  of  gods  are  still 
obscure.  It  is  often  difficult  to  determine  whether  we  are  deal- 
ing with  gods  or  spirits,  and  the  origin  and  meaning  of  many 
of  the  names  and  epithets  assigned  to  gods  are  similarly  in- 

1  May  also  be  read  Sha-ush-ka. 

2  See  above,  pp.  13,  170. 

3  E.g.,  IIR.  58,  no.  5,  titles  of  Ea;  1IR.  60,  no.  2,  titles  of  Nabu. 

4  E.g.,  IIR.  60,  no.  1. 

6  E.g.,  II1R.  66,  lists  of  gods  worshipped  in  various  temples  of  Assyria  and  also 
of  Babylonia. 


2.14  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

volved  in  doubt.  Use  has  been  made  of  these  lists  in  deter- 
mining the  character  of  the  gods  included  in  this  survey  of  the 
Babylonian  and  Assyrian  pantheon,  but  it  would  be  manifestly 
precarious  to  make  additions  to  this  pantheon  on  the  basis  of 
the  lists  alone.  Despite  the  tendency  towards  centralization 
of  divine  power  in  a  limited  number  of  gods,  local  cults,  no 
doubt,  continued  to  enjoy  some  importance  in  Assyria  as  well 
as  Babylonia;  but,  in  the  present  stage  of  our  knowledge,  we 
have  no  means  of  determining  either  the  number  or  the  char- 
acter of  these  local  cults.  While,  therefore,  a  complete  treat- 
ment of  the  pantheon  of  Babylonia  and  Assyria  would  include 
all  the  minor  local  cults,  we  may  feel  quite  certain  that  these 
local  cults  furnish  few,  if  any,  additions  to  the  concepts  con- 
nected with  these  gods  which  we  have  discussed.  I  have 
therefore  contented  myself  with  some  illustrations,  in  each  of 
the  three  divisions  under  which  the  pantheon  has  been  surveyed, 
of  some  of  the  minor  deities  chosen,  such  as  actually  occur  in 
historical,  commercial,  or  religious  texts.  For  the  Assyrian 
pantheon,  we  may  place  Nin-gal  and  most  of  the  consorts  of 
the  gods  among  the  minor  gods,  and  also  such  deities  as 
Ka-di,  Khani,  Gaga,  Dibbarra,  Sherua,  and  Azag-sir,  who  are 
merely  incidentally  referred  to.1  These  illustrations  suffice 
for  placing  clearly  before  us  the  distinction  to  be  made  in  the 
pantheon  between  gods  whose  worship  was  actively  carried 
on,  and  those  who  occupy  more  of  a  theoretical  position  in 
the  system  perfected  by  the  schoolmen,  standing  under  the 
political  and  social  influences  of  their  days.  With  this  dis- 
tinction clearly  impressed  upon  us,  we  will  be  prepared  for 
such  modifications  of  our  views  of  the  Babylonian-Assyrian 
pantheon  as  further  researches  and  discoveries  may  render 
necessary. 

1  See  pp.  i  So,  23S. 


CHAPTER   XIII. 

THE  TRIAD   AND   THE    COMBINED    INVOCATION   OF    DEITIES. 

• 

The  Assyrian  kings,  in  imitation  of  the  example  set  by  their 
Babylonian  predecessors,  are  fond  of  introducing  into  their 
inscriptions,  a  series  of  gods  under  whose  protection  they  place 
themselves.  They  do  not  do  this  as  the  earlier  Babylonian 
rulers  did,  to  emphasize  the  extent  of  their  jurisdiction  by  add- 
ing to  their  pantheon  the  deities  of  towns  or  districts  vanquished 
by  them.  The  day  of  independent  states  being  over,  the  impor- 
tance of  merely  local  deities  had  ceased.  The  theological 
system  evolved  in  Babylonia  in  combination  with  the  popular 
instinct  had  led  to  a  selection  out  of  the  mass  of  deities  of  a 
limited  number,  each  with  tolerably  definite  attributes,  and  who 
together  embraced  all  the  forces  under  whose  power  mankind 
stood.  Of  these  deities  again,  as  we  have  seen,  some  acquired 
greater  favor  in  Assyria  than  others,  but  for  all  that,  the  kings 
especially  of  the  later  period  of  Assyrian  history  were  fond  of 
including  in  an  enumeration  of  the  pantheon,  even  those  who 
had  no  special  significance.  Policy  and  the  meaningless  imi- 
tation of  earlier  examples  played  an  equal  part  in  thus  giving 
to  the  lists  an  aspect  of  formality  that  deprives  them  of  the 
impression  that  they  might  otherwise  make. 

The  combined  invocations  are  found  usually  at  the  beginning 
and  at  the  end  of  the  inscriptions — at  the  beginning  for  invok- 
ing the  aid  of  the  gods,  at  the  close  for  invoking  their  curses 
upon  those  who  would  attempt  to  destroy  the  ambitious  monu- 
ments set  up  by  the  kings.  Often,  however,  the  narrative  is 
interrupted  for  the  purpose  of  making  acknowledgment  to  a 
larger  or  smaller  series  of  gods  for  victory,  granted  or  hoped  for. 


236  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

In  these  combined  references  a  separate  place  belongs  to  the 
triad,  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea.  While  not  occupying  the  prominent 
position  they  have  in  Babylonian  inscriptions,  still  the  kings 
often  mention  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea  separately,  or  Anu  and  Bel 
alone,  ascribing  victory  to  them,  putting  them  down  as  the 
originators  of  the  calendar  system,  and  declaring  themselves  to 
have  been  nominated  by  them  to  rule  over  Assyria.  Sargon, 
with  his  antiquarian  zeal,  appears  to  have  made  an  effort  to 
reinstate  the  triad  as  a  special  group  in  the  pantheon.  In  gen- 
eral, however,  they  take  their  place  with  other  gods.  So  Ram- 
man-nirari  I.  invokes  the  curse  of  Ashur,  Anu,  Bel,  Ea,  and  Ish- 
tar,  together  with  the  Igigi  and  Anunnaki  ;  but,  what  is  more 
important,  already  at  an  early  period  the  triad  disappears  alto- 
gether from  the  pantheon,  except  for  the  artificial  attempts  of 
Sargon  to  revive  interest  in  them.  In  both  the  longer  and 
shorter  lists  of  gods  enumerated  by  the  kings  from  the  time  of 
Tiglathpileser,  the  triad  is  conspicuous  for  its  absence. 

As  for  the  other  gods,  it  is  to  some  extent  a  matter  of  caprice 
which  ones  happen  to  be  invoked,  though  just  as  frequently  we 
see  the  motive  for  selecting  certain  ones  of  the  pantheon.  Thus, 
when  proceeding  to  babylonia  for  war  or  sacrifices,  the  gods 
of  Babylonia  are  invoked,  either  Marduk  and  Nairn  alone, 
as  the  chief  gods,  or  Bel  {i.e.,  Marduk),  Sarpanitum,  Nairn, 
Tashmitum,  Nana,  Nergal,  with  Ashur,  or  Ashur  and  Marduk, 
or  Marduk  and  Nabu  in  combination  with  Ashur.  At  other 
times  it  depends  upon  the  gods  to  whom  certain  kings  may 
be  especially  attached,  or  with  whom  they  may  have  special 
dealings  in  their  inscriptions.  Thus  Tiglathpileser  I.,  when 
speaking  of  the  temple  of  Ann  and  Ramman,  contents  himself 
with  invoking  these  two  gods  alone  at  the  close  of  his  great 
inscription.  Elsewhere,  when  referring  to  the  special  gods  of 
his  city,  he  combines  Anu  and  Ramman  with  [shtar  ;  but 
again,  for  no  special  reason,  his  prayer  is  addressed  to  Ashur, 
Shamash,  and    Ramman.     The  pantheon  of   Ramman-nirari  I. 


THE    COMBINED   INVOCATION   OE  DEITIES.  237 

consists  either  of  the  longer  one  above  enumerated,  or  of  Anu, 
Ashur,  Shamash,  Ramman,  and  Ishtar.  As  we  proceed  down 
the  centuries,  the  formal  lists  at  the  beginning  of  inscriptions 
have  a  tendency  to  grow  larger.  Ashnrnasirbal's  pantheon  con. 
sists  of  Bel  and  Nin-ib,  Anu  and  Dagan,  Sin,  Anu,  Ramman, 
and,  of  course,  Ashur,  though  on  special  occasions,  as  when 
speaking  of  his  achievements  in  the  chase,  he  contents  himself 
with  a  mention  of  Nin-ib  and  Nergal.  He  loves,  too,  to  vary 
the  style  of  his  inscriptions  by  naming  various  groups  of  deities 
in  pairs:  now  Ashur  and  Shamash,  again  Ashur  and  Nin-ib,  or 
Ashur  and  Bel ;  then  Shamash  and  Ramman,  or  a  group  of 
three  deities,  Ashur,  Shamash,  and  Ramman,  or  Sin,  Anu,  and 
Ramman.  His  successors  imitate  this  example,  though  each 
one  chooses  his  own  combinations.  Shalmaneser  II. 's  pan- 
theon embraces  Ashur,  Anu,  Bel,  Ea,  Sin,  Shamash,  Nin-ib, 
Nergal,  Nusku,  Belit,  and  Ishtar  —  eleven  in  all.  Sargon's 
practice  varies.  The  best  list  is  furnished  by  his  account  of 
the  eight  gates  of  his  palace  and  of  two  walls,  which  he  names 
after  the  gods  in  the  following  order :  l 

Shamash,  who  grants  victory.  ■»  As   the    names    for    the 


! 


Ramman,  who  brings  superabundance.  \  eastern  gates. 

Bel,  who  lays  foundations.  ) 

r>  ,-t      it-        i    ..,..       r  For  the  northern  gates. 
Bent,  who  brings  fertility.   )  b 

Anu,  who  blesses  handiwork.  )  For    the    western 

Ishtar,  who  causes  the  inha 

Ea,  who  unlocks  fountains. 


Ishtar,  who  causes  the  inhabitants  to  nourish.  )  gates. 


rr      .        >  For  the  southern  <rates. 
.bent  Warn,-  who  increases  the  offspring.  >  to 

Ashur,  who  permits  the  king  to  grow  old,  and  protects  the  troops. 

—  For  the  inner  wall. 

Nin-ib,  who  lays  the  foundations  of  the  city.  —  For  the  outer  wall. 

The  order  here  is  dictated  by  the  directions  of  the  gates. 
Elsewhere  he  sets  up  the  group  Ea,  Sin,  Shamash,  Nabu, 
Ramman,   Nin-ib,   and  their  consorts. 

1  Cylinder,  11.  67-73.  ~  Ea's  consort ;  see  above,  p.  231. 


238  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Sennacherib's  fuller  group  consists  of  Ashur,  Sin,  Shamash, 
Bel  {i.e.,  Marduk),  Nabu,  Nergal,  Ishtar  of  Nineveh,  and  Ishtar 
of  Arbela  —  only  eight.  But  at  the  close  of  one  of  his  building 
inscriptions  l  he  invokes  some  twenty  deities,  adding  to  these 
eight,  Nusku,  Khani,  Gaga,  Sherua,  Nin-gal,  a  god  Azag-sir, 
and  Nin-ib  under  three  different  forms;  but  it  is  evident 
that  most  of  these  are  added  to  give  effect  and  solemnity. 
They  do  not  form  part  of  the  active  pantheon.  His  successor, 
Esarhaddon,  sets  up  various  groups.  At  one  time  he  enumer- 
ates Ashur,  Sin,  Shamash,  Nabu,  Marduk,  Ishtar  of  Nineveh, 
Ishtar  of  Arbela  ;  at  another  he  prefers  different  combinations 
of  these  gods.  Ashurbanabal  is  more  consistent  than  most  of 
the  Assyrian  rulers,  and  furnishes  at  the  same  time  the  best 
list.  While  he,  too,  frequently  mentions  only  a  few  deities, 
grouping  three  or  four  together,  his  longer  series  consists,  with 
but  one  or  two  exceptions,  invariably  of  the  following,  and 
who  always  occur  in  the  same  order:  Ashur,  Belit,  Sin,  Sham- 
ash, Ramman,  Bel  (i.e.,  Marduk),  Nabu,  Ishtar  of  Nineveh, 
the  queen  of  Kidmuru,  Ishtar  of  Arbela,  Nin-ib,  Nergal,  and 
Nusku  —  thirteen  in  all.  Of  these,  as  we  have  seen,  only 
some  were  actively  worshipped  at  all  times  in  Assyria;  as  for 
the  others,  the  popularity  of  their  cult  varied  from  age  to  age, 
now  being  actively  carried  on  under  the  stimulus  afforded  by 
the  erection  or  improvement  of  an  edifice  sacred  to  the  god, 
and  again  falling  into  comparative  insignificance  ;  but  formally, 
at  least,  all  these  gods  were  regarded  at  all  times  as  forming 
part  of  the  pantheon  of  the  'great  gods.'  The  testimony  of 
Ashurbanabal  thus  becomes  valuable  as  a  proof  that  to  the 
latest  days  of  the  Assyrian  monarchy,  the  attachment  to  these 
gods  was  still  strong  enough  to  merit  the  formal  acknowledg- 
ments of  the  king  to  them  on  all  occasions,  and  that  through 
their  combined  aid  the  glorious  achievements  of  the  past  and 
present  were  attained. 

1  Meissner  Rost,  Bauinschrifien  SanheriPs,  p.  99. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 


THE   NEO-BABYLONIAN   PERIOD. 


When  upon  the  fall  of  the  Assyrian  empire,  in  606  B.C., 
Babylonia  regained  her  full  measure  of  independence,  Marduk 
once  more  obtained  undisputed  sway  at  the  head  of  the  pan- 
theon. True,  so  far  as  Babylonia  was  concerned,  Marduk  was 
always  the  acknowledged  head,  but  during  the  period  that 
Assyria  held  Babylonia  in  a  more  or  less  rigid  form  of  subjec- 
tion it  was  inevitable  that  Ashur  should  lower  the  prestige  of 
Marduk.  When  the  kings  of  Assyria  paid  their  respects  to 
Marduk,  it  was  always  as  second  in  rank  to  Ashur  ;  and,  what  is 
more,  they  claimed  Marduk  and  the  other  gods  of  Babylonia  as 
their  own,  and  as  upholders  of  their  own  sovereignty.  When 
the  kings  feel  impelled  to  invade  the  southern  districts,  they 
not  only  claim  to  be  under  the  protection  of  the  Babylonian 
gods,  but  they  carry  these  gods  with  them  into  the  land  to  be 
invaded.  '  Bel  and  the  gods  of  Akkad  leave  Assyria  and  go  to 
Babylonia  '  is  the  official  term  in  which  a  campaign  against 
Babylonia  is  described.1  In  the  eyes  of  the  Babylonians  such  a 
haughty  assumption  on  the  part  of  the  Assyrians  must  have  been 
regarded  as  humiliating  to  Marduk,  Nabu,  and  their  associates. 

The  state  of  affairs  changed  when  Nebopolassar  at  the  end 
of  the  seventh  century  once  more  claimed  independent  control 
over  Babylonia.  Marduk  triumphs  over  Ashur.  He  is  once 
more  the  great  god,  lord  of  gods,  supreme  king  of  the  Igigi, 
the  father  of  the  Anunnaki  —  all  titles  that  the  Assyrians  were 
fond  of  heaping  upon  Ashur.     One  feels  the  anxiety  of  Nebo- 

1  Babylonian  Chronicle  B,  col.  iv.  11.  34,  35. 


240  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

polassar  to  emphasize  the  new  order  of  things  by  attributing 
once  more  to  Marduk  what  was  formerly  claimed  for  Ashur. 
The  successor  of  Nebopolassar,  the  great  Nebuchadnezzar,  con- 
tinues the  policy  of  his  father.      He  neglects  no  opportunity  for 
exalting  Marduk  as  the  king,  the  creator,  the  leader  of  the  gods, 
the  lord  of  everything,  the  merciful  one,  the  light  of  the  gods,  the 
all-wise.     Nabu  shares  the  honors  with  Marduk.     Nebopolassar, 
indeed,  accords  to  Nabu  an  equal  share,  and  he  does  not  hesitate 
at  times  to  place  the  name  Nabu  before  that  of  Marduk.1     He 
does  not  speak  of  Nabu  as  the  son  of  Marduk,  and  seems  to  be 
at  particular  pains  to  emphasize  the  equality  of   Nabu   with 
Marduk.     In  this  respect  Nebopolassar  presents  a  contrast  to 
Hammurabi,  who,  it  will  be  recalled,  made  an  attempt  to  sup- 
press the  Nabu  cult.2     Nebopolassar,  however,  does  not  go  to 
the  extent  of  endeavoring  to  make  Nabu  supersede  Marduk. 
He   contents  himself  with  manifesting  his  partiality    for   the 
former,  and   it   is  probably  no  accident   that  both  his  official 
name  and  that  of  his  son  contain  the  god  Nabu  as  one   of 
their  elements,  and   not  Marduk.     One  is  inclined  to  suspect 
that  this  popularity  of  the   Nabu  cult  is  a  trace  of  Assyrian 
influence.      But  whatever  may  have  been  Nebopolassar's  inten- 
tion in  exalting  Nabu  at  the  cost  of  Marduk,  Nebuchadnezzar 
restores  the  old  relationship  between  the  two.     For  him  Nabu 
is  again  merely  the  son  of  Marduk,  and  he  honors  Nabu  in  this 
capacity.     Like  the  Assyrian  Nabu,  the  god  places  the  sceptre 
in    the    king's    hands,   but  he  is,   after  all,   only   the    supreme 
messenger  of  Marduk.     In  the  closing  days  of  the  Babylonian 
monarchy  a   more  serious  attempt,  it  would  appear,  was  made 
to  displace  Marduk.      Nabonnedos  formed  the  design  of  replac- 
ing both  Marduk  and  Nabu  by  the  cult  of  Shamash.      He  incurs 
the  ill-will  of  the  priests  by  paying  much  more  attention  to  the 
restoration  of  the  various  Shamash  temples  in  babylonia  than 

1  Zeitschrift  fiir  Assyriologie,  ii.  72,  col.  i.  11.  2,  3. 

2  Set'  above,  p.  127. 


THE    NEO-BABYLONIAN  PERIOD.  241 

would  appear  to  be  consistent  with  devotion  to  Marduk.  Cyrus, 
therefore,  in  his  conquest  of  Babylonia,  sets  up  the  claim  of 
being  the  savior  of  Marduk's  honor.1 

The  Neo-Babylonian  period  may  properly  be  designated  as 
a  religious  age.  The  rulers,  anxious  to  manifest  their  gratitude 
to  the  gods,  and  prompted  in  part,  no  doubt,  by  the  desire  to 
emulate  the  glorious  architectural  achievements  of  the  Assyrian 
monarchs,  devote  themselves  assiduously  to  the  improvement 
of  the  great  temples  of  the  city  of  Babylon,  and  to  the  restora- 
tion or  enlargement  of  those  scattered  throughout  the  country. 
Nebopolassar  sets  the  example  in  this  respect,  which  is  consid- 
erably improved  upon  by  Nebuchadnezzar.  Over  forty  temples 
and  shrines  are  mentioned  in  the  latter's  inscriptions  as  having 
been  improved,  enlarged,  or  restored  by  him  ;  and  the  last  king 
of  Babylonia,  Nabonnedos,  endeavors  to  continue  this  royal 
policy  of  temple-building.  In  this  respect  the  Neo-Babylonian 
rulers  present  a  contrast  to  the  Assyrian  rulers,  who  were 
much  more  concerned  in  rearing  grand  edifices  for  themselves. 
While  the  gods  were  not  neglected  in  Assyria,  one  hears  much 
more  of  the  magnificent  palaces  erected  by  the  kings  than  of 
temples  and  shrines.  In  fact,  as  compared  with  Babylonia, 
Assyria  was  poor  in  the  number  of  her  temples.  The  chief 
sanctuaries  to  which  the  Neo-Babylonian  kings  devoted  them- 
selves were,  in  the  first  instance,  E-sagila  of  Babylon  and 
E-zida  of  Borsippa.  Nebopolassar  and  his  successors  are 
fond  of  giving  themselves  the  title  of  '  beautifier  of  E-Saeila 
and  E-zida.'  In  these  great  temples  sacred  to  Marduk  and 
Nebo,  there  were  shrines  to  Sarpanitum,  Tashmitum,  Nusku, 
and  Ea,  which  also  engaged  the  energies  of  the  rulers. 

After  Babylon  came  the  old  sanctuaries  in  the  ancient  reli- 
gious centers  of  the  south,  —  the  temples  to  Shamash  and  his 
consort  at  Sippar  and  Larsa,  the  temples  to  Sin  at  Ur  and  Har- 

1  See  a  recent  paper  by  Tiele,  on  "  Cyrus  and  the  Babylonian  Religion,"  in  the 
Proceedings  of  the  Amsterdam  Academy,  1S96. 


242  /.'.  IB'YLONIAA '  ASS  i  'MAN  RELIGION. 

ran,  to  the  old  Ishtar  or  Anunit  at  Agade,  to  Nana  in  Erech. 
Thirdly,  the  cities  of  Babylon  and  Borsippa,  to  which  the 
kings,  especially  Nebuchadnezzar,  are  deeply  attached,  were 
enriched  with  many  sanctuaries  more  or  less  imposing,  sacred 
to  a  variety  of  deities.  So  Shamash,  Sin,  Nin-makh,  —  i.e.,  the 
great  lady,  or  Ishtar,  —  Nin-khar-shag,  Gula,  also  appearing  as 
Nin-Karrak,1  have  their  temples  in  Babylon,  while  Ramman 
has  one  in  Borsippa,  and  Gula  no  less  than  three  sanctuaries 
-  perhaps  only  small  chapels  —  in  Borsippa.  Fourthly,  there 
are  sanctuaries  of  minor  importance  in  other  quarters  of  Baby- 
lonia. Among  these  we  find  mention  of  the  improvement  of 
sanctuaries  to  the  local  deity  of  Marad,  whom  Nebuchadnezzar 
simply  calls  Lugal-Marad  a,  i.e.,  king  of  Marad,  to  Bel-sarbi,  or 
Shar-sarbi,  in  Baz,  —  perhaps  a  title  of  Nergal,  —  to  Nin-ib  in 
Dilbat,  to  Ramman  in  Kumari(?). 

Most  of  these  sanctuaries  are  referred  to  in  the  inscriptions 
of  Nebuchadnezzar  —  a  circumstance  which,  in  connection  with 
the  many  other  gods  whom  he  invokes  on  various  occasions, 
points  to  a  great  revival  of  ancient  cults  in  his  days.  Some  of 
these  cults  had  never  reached  any  degree  of  importance  prior 
to  his  time.  Hence  it  happens  that  we  come  across  deities  in 
his  inscriptions  of  whom  no  mention  is  found  elsewhere.  It  is 
probable  that  such  gods  were  purely  local  deities,  some  of  them, 
if  not  many,  being  at  the  same  time  personifications  of  the  pow- 
ers or  phenomena  of  nature,  while  others  may  be  familiar  gods, 
masquerading  under  strange  attributes.  Unfortunately  most  of 
these  gods  are  written  in  ideographic  fashion,  so  that  we  cannot 
be  certain  of  the  reading  of  their  names.  Among  these  are 
Nin-lil-anna,  a  goddess  called  by  Nebuchadnezzar  '  the  lady 
who  loves   me,'2  and    Tur-lil-en,'"'  a  god  who  is  described    as 

1  For  the  identity  of  Nin-Karrak  and  Gula,  see  the  '  Shurpu '  Incantation  Series, 
iv.  1.86  (ed.  Zimmern),  where  the  former  is  called  the  'great  physician,'  — the  epithet 
peculiar  to  Gula.  2  East  India  House  Inscription,  col.  iv.  1.  44. 

8  VR.  34, col.  ii.  1.  26,  or  simply  Tur-lil  (East  India  House  Inscription,  col.  iv.  1.  49, 
not  Tur-e,  as  Winckler,  Keils  Bibl.  3,  2,  iS,  reads). 


THE   NEO-BABYLONIAN  PERIOD.  243 

'breaking  the  weapons  of  enemies.'  As  for  Bel-sarbi,  or  Shar- 
sarbi,  the  god  of  Baz,1  they  appear  to  be  titles  rather  than 
names.  Dibbarra,  Nergal  and  his  consort  Laz,  and  Zamama 
are  also  included  in  the  pantheon  of  Nebuchadnezzar. 

In  regard  to  none  of  these  deities  do  we  find  any  conceptions 
different  from  those  developed  in  the  period  of  Hammurabi, 
any  more  than  in  the  conceptions  of  those  gods  who  occupy  a 
more  prominent  place  in  the  pantheon.  Shamash  is  the  judge, 
Sin  is  the  wise  one,  Ramman  the  thunderer,  and  so  on  through- 
out the  list.  It  was  not  a  period  favorable  to  the  production  of 
new  religious  thought,  but  only  to  the  more  or  less  artificial 
revival  of  old  cults. 

With  the  conquest  of  Babylonia  by  Cyrus  in  539  B.C.,  we 
reach  the  close  of  the  period  to  be  embraced  in  a  history  of  the 
Babylonian-Assyrian  religion.  True,  the  Marduk  and  Nabu 
cults  were  upheld  by  the  Persian  rulers,  and  the  policy  of  the 
latter  in  not  disturbing  the  religious  status  was  continued  by 
the  Greeks  when  they  in  turn  succeeded  the  Persians  in  then- 
control  of  Babylonia,  but  the  presence  of  strange  civilizations 
with  totally  different  religious  trains  of  thought  was  bound  to 
affect  the  character  of  the  old  faith,  and  in  time  to  threaten  its 
existence.  At  all  events,  it  ceases  to  have  any  interest  for  us. 
There  are  no  further  lines  of  development  upon  which  it  enters. 
The  period  of  decay,  of  slow  but  sure  decay,  has  set  in.  The 
cuneiform  writing  continues  to  be  used  till  almost  the  begin- 
ning of  our  era,  and  so  the  religious  cults  draw  out  their 
existence  to  a  late  period  ;  but  as  the  writing  and  the  civiliza- 
tion yield  before  new  forces  that  entirely  alter  the  character 
of   Oriental   culture,  so    also    the  religion,    after    sinking   ever 

1  I.e.,  king  or  lord  of  Sarbi.  Pognon  (Lcs  Inscriptions  Babyloniennes  de  Wadi 
Brissd),  p.  46,  is  of  the  opinion  that  sarbi  is  the  palm,  but  he  fails  to  bring  sufficient 
proof,  and  his  theory  is  improbable.  The  stem  sarabu  means  to  burn,  and  the  "  fiery- 
lord  "  is  certainly  an  epithet  belonging  to  some  solar  deity. 


244  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

lower  into  the  bogs  of  superstition,  disappears,  much  as  the 
canals  and  little  streams  of  the  Euphrates  valley,  through 
the  neglect  which  settled  over  the  country,  become  lost  in  the 
death-breeding  swamps  and  marshes. 


CHAPTER    XV. 

THE   RELIGIOUS    LITERATURE   OF   BABYLONIA. 

The  pantheon  of  a  religion  presents  us  with  the  external 
phases  of  the  religion  in  question.  In  order  to  penetrate 
further  towards  the  core  of  the  religion,  and  to  see  it  at  its 
best,  the  religious  thought  as  manifested  in  the  national  litera- 
ture constitutes  our  most  valuable  guide.  The  beginnings  of 
Babylonian  literature  are  enveloped  in  obscurity.  We  have 
seen  that  we  are  justified  in  passing  beyond  the  period  of 
Hammurabi1  for  these  beginnings,  but  exactly  when  and  pre- 
cisely how  the  literary  spirit  first  manifested  itself  in  Babylonia 
will  probably  remain  for  a  long  time,  if  not  for  always,  a  matter 
of  conjecture.  The  great  political  and  religious  centers  of 
Babylonia,  such  as  Ur,  Sippar,  Agade,  Eridu,  Nippur,  Uruk, 
perhaps  also  Lagash,  and  later  on  Babylon,  formed  the  foci  of 
literary  activity,  as  they  were  the  starting-points  of  commercial 
enterprise.  This  intimate  connection  of  religion  with  literature 
left  its  impress  upon  all  branches  into  which  the  Babylonian 
literature  was  in  the  course  of  time  differentiated.  In- a  certain 
sense  all  the  literature  of  Babylonia  is  religious.  Even  the 
legal  formulas,  as  embodied  in  the  so-called  contract  tablets, 
have  a  religious  tinge.  The  priests  being  the  scribes,  a  con- 
tract of  any  kind  between  two  or  more  parties  was  a  religious 
compact.  The  oath  which  accompanied  the  compact  involved 
an  invocation  of  the  gods.  The  decree  of  the  judges  in  a  dis- 
puted suit  was  confirmed  by  an  appeal  to  the  gods.  The  terms 
in  which  the  parties  bound  themselves  consisted  largely  of 
religious  phrases,  and  finally  the  dating  of  the  tablet  often  con- 
tained a  reference  to  some  religious  festival  or  to  some  event 

l  See  above,  pp.  72,  114,  133  seq. 


246  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

of  religious  import  —  such  as  the  building  of  a  sanctuary. 
Science,  so  far  as  it  existed  in  Babylonia,  never  loosened  the 
leading-strings  that  bound  it  to  the  prevailing  religious  thought. 
The  observation  of  the  stars  was  carried  on  under  the  belief  of 
the  supposed  influence  exerted  by  the  heavenly  bodies  upon 
the  fate  of  man;  and  surprising  as  we  find  the  development  of 
astronomical  calculations  and  forecasts  to  be,  mathematics  dues 
not  pass  beyond  the  limits  of  astrology.  Medicine  was  like- 
wise the  concern  of  the  priests.  Disease  was  a  divine  infliction 
supposed  to  be  due  to  the  direct  presence  in  the  body,  or  to 
the  hidden  influence,  of  some  pernicious  spirit.  The  cure  was 
effected  by  the  exorcising  of  the  troublesome  spirit  through 
prescribed  formulas  of  supposed  power,  accompanied  by  sym- 
bolical acts.  There  is  indeed  no  branch  of  human  knowledge 
which  so  persistently  retains  its  connection  with  religious  beliefs 
among  all  peoples  of  antiquity  as  the  one  which  to-day  is 
regarded  as  resting  solely  upon  a  materialistic  basis.  As  a 
consequence  the  Babylonians,  although  they  made  some  prog- 
ress in  medicinal  methods,  and  more  especially  in  medical 
diagnosis,  never  dissociated  medicinal  remedies  from  the  appeal 
to  the  gods.  The  recital  of  formulas  was  supposed  to  secure 
by  their  magic  force  the  effectiveness  of  the  medical  potions 
that  were  offered  to  the  sufferer. 

As  for  the  historical  texts,  the  preceding  chapters  have  illus- 
trated how  full  they  are  of  religious  allusions,  how  at  every 
turn  we  meet  with  the  influence  exerted  by  the  priests  as  the 
composers  of  these  texts.  Almost  all  occurrences  are  given  a 
religious  coloring.  That  these  texts  furnish  us  with  such  valu- 
able material,  and  such  a  quantity  of  it,  is  indeed  to  be  traced 
directly  to  the  fact  that  the  historical  literature  is  also  the  direct 
production  of  the  religious  leaders  and  guides  of  the  people, 
acting  at  the  command  of  rulers,  who  were  desirous  of  empha- 
sizing their  dependence  upon  the  gods  of  the  country,  and  who 
made  this  dependence  the  basis  of  the  authority  they  exerted. 


THE   RELIGIOUS   LI  IE  NATURE    OE  BABYLONIA.      247 

Such  being  the  general  aspect  of  Babylonian  literature,  it  is 
not  always  possible  to  draw  a  sharp  line  separating  religious 
productions  from  such  as  may  properly  be  termed  secular.  For 
example,  the  zodiacal  system  of  the  Babylonians,  which  we 
shall  have  occasion  to  discuss,  although  presenting  a  scientific 
aspect,  is  in  reality  an  outcome  of  the  religious  thought  ;  and 
so  at  other  points  it  is  necessary  to  pass  over  into  the  region  of 
secular  thought  for  illustrations  of  the  religious  beliefs.  Bear- 
ing this  in  mind,  we  may  set  up  a  fivefold  division  of  the 
religious  literature  of  the  Babylonians  in  the  stricter  sense  :  (i) 
the  magical  texts,  (2)  the  hymns  and  prayers,  (3)  omens  and 
forecasts,  (4)  the  cosmology,  (5)  epics  and  legends.  It  will  be 
apparent  that  the  first  three  divisions  represent  a  practical  part 
of  the  literature,  while  the  two  latter  are  of  a  more  purely 
literary  character.  The  magical  texts,  as  well  as  the  hymns 
and  prayers  and  omens,  we  can  well  imagine  were  produced  as 
circumstances  called  them  forth,  and  one  can  also  understand 
how  they  should,  at  an  early  age,  have  been  committed  to  writing. 
The  incantations  serving  the  practical  purpose  already  referred 
to  of  securing  a  control  over  the  spirit,  it  will  be  readily  seen 
that  such  as  had  demonstrated  their  effectiveness  would  be- 
come popular.  The  desire  would  arise  to  preserve  them  for 
future  generations.  With  that  natural  tendency  of  loose  cus- 
tom to  become  fixed  law,  these  incantations  would  come  to  be 
permanently  associated  with  certain  temples.  Rituals  would 
thus  arise.  The  incantation  would  be  committed  to  writing  so 
that  one  generation  of  priests  might  be  certain  of  furnishing 
orthodox  instruction  to  the  other  ;  and,  once  written,  they  would 
form  part  of  the  temple  archives,  finding  a  place  in  these  archives 
by  the  side  of  the  contract  tablets,  for  which  the  sacred  edifices 
of  the  country  also  served  as  depositories.  The  large  quantity 
of  incantation  texts  that  have  been  found  in  Ashurbanabal's 
library,1  as  well  as  the  variations  and  contrasts  they  present 

1  See  pp.  12-14. 


24S  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

when  compared  with  one  another,  are  probably  clue  to  the 
various  sources  whence  the  scribes  of  the  king,  who  were  sent 
to  the  libraries  of  the  south,  collected  their  material.  It  is 
only  reasonable  to  suppose  that  each  great  temple  acquired  in 
the  course  of  time  a  ritual  of  its  own,  which,  while  perhaps  not 
differing  in  any  essential  points  from  that  introduced  in  another 
place,  yet  deviated  from  it  sufficiently  to  impart  to  it  a  char- 
acter of  its  own.  In  the  case  of  some  of  the  texts  that  have 
been  preserved,  it  is  still  possible  to  determine  through  certain 
traits  that  they  exhibit  in  what  religious  center  they  were  pro- 
duced. With  considerable  more  guarantee  of  accuracy  can 
this  be  done  in  the  case  of  the  hymns  and  prayers.  Addressed 
as  the  latter  were  to  certain  deities,  it  stands  to  reason  that 
they  were  written  for  use  in  the  temples  sacred  to  those  deities, 
or,  if  not  to  be  used,  at  least  composed  in  honor  of  certain 
sanctuaries  that  contained  the  images  of  the  deities  thus  exalted. 
Again,  in  the  historical  inscriptions  of  the  Assyrian  and  Neo- 
Babylonian  periods,  prayers  are  introduced,  and  we  are  as  a 
general  thing  expressly  told  on  what  occasion  they  were  com- 
posed and  in  what  sanctuary  they  were  uttered.  We  may 
therefore  conclude  that  those  which  have  been  preserved  inde- 
pendently also  served  a  practical  purpose,  and  were  written,  not 
merely  for  certain  occasions,  but  for  certain  places.  The  prac- 
tical purpose  served  by  texts  containing  omens  and  forecasts 
derived  from  the  observation  of  the  planets  and  stars,  from 
monstrosities  —  human  and  animal  —  from  strange  occurrences, 
accidents,  and  the  like,  is  too  obvious  to  require  demonstration. 
But  while  duly  emphasizing  the  practical  purpose  that  gave  rise 
to  the  incantation  texts,  the  hymns,  the  prayers  and  omens, 
we  must  be  careful  not  to  press  this  point  too  far.  The 
rituals  of  the  various  temples  once  being  fixed,  the  impulse 
to  literary  composition  would  still  go  on  in  an  age  marked  by 
intellectual  activity.  The  practical  purpose  would  be  followed 
by  the  pure  love  of  composition.       The  attachment  to  certain 


THE  RELIGIOUS  LITERATURE    OF  BABYLONIA.      249 

sanctuaries  or  certain  deities  would  inspire  earnest  and  gifted 
priests  to  further  efforts.  Accordingly,  while  we  cannot  be 
certain  that  among  the  actual  remains  of  magical  texts  and 
hymns  we  may  not  have  specimens  that  belong  to  this  class, 
there  is  no  reason  to  question  that  such  must  have  been  pro- 
duced. The  guarantee  for  this  hypothesis  is  furnished  by  the 
compositions  that  reflect  the  cosmological  beliefs,  the  epics 
and  legends  that  form  the  second  half  of  the  religious  produc- 
tions of  Babylonia. 

Speculation  regarding  the  origin  of  the  universe  belongs  to 
an  early  period  in  the  development  of  culture.  There  are  few 
people,  however  primitive  their  culture,  who  are  not  attracted 
by  the  spirit  of  curiosity  to  seek  for  some  solution  of  the  mys- 
teries which  they  daily  witness;  but  the  systematization  of  these 
speculations  does  not  take  place  until  a  body  of  men  arises 
among  a  people  capable  of  giving  to  the  popular  fancies  a  logi- 
cal sequence,  or  the  approach  at  least  to  a  rational  interpreta- 
tion. This  process,  which  resulted  in  producing  in  Babylonia 
compositions  that  unfold  a  system  of  creation,  is  one  of  long 
duration.  It  proceeds  under  the  influence  of  the  intellectual 
movements  that  manifest  themselves  from  time  to  time  with  the 
attendant  result  that,  as  the  conceptions  become  more  definite 
and  more  elaborate,  they  reflect  more  accurately  the  aspirations 
of  the  various  generations  engaged  in  bringing  these  concep- 
tions to  their  final  form.  When  finally  these  beliefs  and  specu- 
lations are  committed  to  writing,  it  is  clone  in  part  for  the 
purpose  of  assuring  them  a  greater  degree  of  permanence,  and 
in  part  to  establish  more  definitely  the  doctrines  developed  in 
the  schools  — to  define,  as  it  were,  the  norm  of  theological  and 
philosophical  thought. 

In  examining,  therefore,  the  cosmological  speculations  of  the 
Babylonians  as  they  appear  in  the  literary  productions,  we  must 
carefully  distinguish  between  those  portions  which  are  the  pro- 
ductions of  popular  fancy,  and  therefore  old,  and  those  parts 


250  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

which  give  evidence  of  having  been  worked  out  in  the  schools. 
In  a  general  way,  also,  we  must  distinguish  between  the  con- 
tents and  the  form  given  to  the  speculations  in  question.  We 
shall  see  in  due  time  that  a  certain  amount  of  historical  tradi- 
tion, however  dimmed,  has  entered  into  the  views  evolved  in 
babylonia  regarding  the  origin  of  things,  inasmuch  as  the  sci- 
ence of  origins  included  for  the  Babylonians  the  beginning,  not 
merely  of  gods,  men,  animals,  and  plants,  but  also  of  cities  and 
of  civilization  in  general.  Still  more  pronounced  is  the  his- 
torical spirit  in  the  case  of  the  epics  and  legends  that  here,  as 
everywhere  else,  grew  to  even  larger  proportions,  and  were 
modified  even  after  they  were  finally  committed  to  writing. 
The  great  heroes  of  the  past  do  not  perish  from  the  memory 
of  a  people,  nor  does  the  recollection  of  great  events  entirely 
pass  away.  In  proportion  as  the  traditions  of  the  past  become 
dimmed,  the  more  easily  do  they  lend  themselves  to  a  blending 
with  popular  myths  regarding  the  phenomena  of  nature.  To  this 
material  popularly  produced,  a  literary  shape  would  be  given 
through  the  same  medium  that  remodeled  the  popular  cosmo- 
logical  speculations.  The  task  would  have  a  more  purely 
literary  aspect  than  that  of  systematizing  the  current  views 
regarding  the  origin  and  order  of  things,  since  it  would  be  free 
from  any  doctrinal  tendency.  The  chief  motive  that  would 
prompt  the  literati  to  thus  collect  the  stories  of  favorite  heroes 
and  the  traditions  and  the  legends  of  the  past  would  be- 
in  addition,  perhaps,  to  the  pure  pleasure  of  composition  — the 
desire  to  preserve  the  stories  for  future  generations,  while  a 
minor  factor  that  may  have  entered  into  consideration  would  be 
the  pedagogical  one  of  adding  to  the  material  for  study  that 
might  engage  the  attention  and  thoughts  of  the  young  aspirants 
to  sacred  and  secular  lore.  While  the  ultimate  aim  of  learning 
in  Babylonia  remained  for  all  times  a  practical  one,  namely, 
the  ability  to  act  as  a  scribe  or  to  serve  in  the  cult,  to  render 
judicial  decisions  or  to  observe  the  movements  of   the  stars,  to 


THE  RELIGIOUS  LITERATURE    OF  BABYLONIA.      251 

interpret  the  signs  of  nature  and  the  like,  it  was  inevitable  that 
through  the  intellectual  activity  thus  evoked  there  would  arise 
a  spirit  of  a  love  of  learning  for  learning's  sake,  and  at  all 
events  a  fondness  for  literary  pursuits  independent  of  any 
purely  practical  purposes  served  by  such  pursuits. 

In  this   way   we   may   account  for   the   rise  of  the   several 
divisions  of  the  religious  literature  of  Babylonia.     Before  turn- 
ing to  a  detailed  exposition  of  each  of  these  divisions,  it  only 
remains  to  emphasize  the  minor  part  taken  in  all  these  literary 
labors  by  the  Assyrians.     The  traditions  embodied  in  the  cos- 
mological  productions,  the  epics  and  legends  of  Babylonia,  are 
no  doubt  as  much  the  property  of  the  Assyrians  as  of  their 
southern  cousins,  just  as  the  conceptions  underlying  the  incan- 
tation texts  and  the  hymns  and  prayers  and  omens,  though  pro- 
duced in  the  south,  are  on  the  whole  identical  with  those  current 
in  the  north.     Whatever  differences  we  have  discovered  between 
the  phases  of  the  Babylonian- Assyrian  religion,  as  manifested  in 
the  north  and  in  the  south,  are  not  of  a  character  to  affect  the 
questions  and  views  involved  in  the  religious  literature.     The 
stamp  given  to  the  literary  products  in   this  field,  taken   as  a 
whole,  is  distinctly  Babylonian.      It  is  the  spirit  of  the  south 
that  breathes  through  almost  all  the  religious  texts  that  have  as 
yet  been  discovered.     Only  in  some  of  the  prayers  and  oracles 
and  omens  that  are  inserted  in  the  historical  inscriptions  of  Assy- 
rian kings,  or  have  been  transmitted  independently,  do  we  recog- 
nize the  work  of  Assyrian  literati,  imbued  with  a  spirit  peculiar 
to  Assyria.      Perhaps,  too,  in  the  final  shape  given  to  the  tales 
connected  with  the  creation  of  the  gods  and  of  men   we  may 
detect  an  Assyrian  influence  on  Babylonian  thought,  some  con- 
cession made  at  a  period  of   Assyrian   supremacy  to   certain 
religious  conceptions  peculiar  to  the  north.    But  such  influences 
are  of  an  indirect  character,  and  we  may  accept  the  statement 
of  Ashurbanabal  as  literally  true  that  the  literature  collected  by 
him  is  a  copy  of  what  was  found  in  the  great  literary  archives 


252  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

of  the  south  —  and  not  only  found,  but  produced  there.  In 
imitation  of  the  example  set  by  the  south,  schools  were  of  a 
certainty  established  in  Nineveh,  Arbela,  and  elsewhere  for  the 
education  of  priests,  scribes,  and  judges;  but  we  have  no  evi- 
dence to  show  that  they  ever  developed  to  the  point  of  becom- 
ing intellectually  independent  of  Babylonian  models,  except 
perhaps  in  minor  particulars  that  need  not  enter  into  our  cal- 
culations. This  relationship  between  the  intellectual  life  of 
Babylonia  and  Assyria  finds  its  illustration  and  proof,  not 
merely  in  the  religious  literature,  but  in  the  religious  art  and 
cult  which,  as  we  shall  see,  like  the  literature,  bear  the  distinct 
impress  of  their  southern  origin,  though  modified  in  passing 
from  the  south  to  the  north. 


CHAPTER    XVI. 
THE   MAGICAL   TEXTS. 

Turning  to  the  first  subdivision  of  Babylonian  religious 
literature,  we  find  remains  sufficient  to  justify  us  in  concluding 
that  there  must  have  been  produced  a  vast  number  of  texts  con- 
taining formulas  and  directions  for  securing  a  control  over  the 
spirits  which  were  supposed  at  all  times  to  be  able  to  exercise 
a  certain  amount  of  power  over  men.  By  virtue  of  the  aim 
served  by  these  productions  we  may  group  them  under  the  head 
of  magical  texts,  or  incantations.  We  have  already  indicated 
the  manner  in  which  these  incantations  grew  into  more  or  less 
rigid  temple  rituals.  This  growth  accounts  for  the  fact  that 
the  incantations  generally  framed  in  by  ceremonial  directions, 
prayers,  and  reflections,  were  combined  into  a  continuous 
series  (or  volume,  as  we  would  say)  of  varying  length,  covering 
nine,  ten,  a  dozen,  twenty  tablets  or  more.  It  has  been  gen- 
erally assumed  that  these  incantation  texts  constitute  the  oldest 
division  of  the  religious  literature  of  the  Babylonians.  The 
assertion  in  an  unqualified  form  is  hardly  accurate,  for  the 
incantation  texts,  such  as  they  lie  before  us,  give  evidence  of 
having  been  submitted  to  the  influences  of  an  age  much  later 
than  the  one  in  which  their  substance  was  produced.  Concep- 
tions have  been  carried  into  them  that  were  originally  absent, 
and  a  form  given  to  them  that  obliges  us  to  distinguish  between 
the  underlying  concepts,  and  the  manner  in  which  these  con- 
cepts have  been  combined  with  views  that  reflect  a  later  and, 
in  many  respects,  a  more  advanced  period.  The  incantation 
texts  are  certainly  no  older  than  texts  furnishing  omens.  Some 
of  the  incantation  texts  indeed  may  not  be  any  older  than  por- 
tions of  the  creation  epic,  and  in  the  latter,  as  in  other  parts  of 


254  BA  /-'  J  /.  ONIAN-ASS )  A'  TAN  RELIGION. 

the  religious  literature,  there  are  elements  as  ancient  and  as 
primitive  as  anything  to  be  found  in  the  omens  or  incantations. 
So  much,  however,  is  true,  that  the  incantations  represent  the 
earliest  ritual  proper  to  the  Babylonian  cult,  and  that  the  con- 
ceptions underlying  this  ritual  are  the  emanation  of  popular 
thought,  or,  if  you  choose,  of  popular  fancy  of  a  most  primitive 
character.  It  is  also  true  that,  on  the  whole,  the  incantation 
texts  retain  more  traces  of  primitive  popular  thought  than  other 
divisions  of  the  religious  literature  with  the  exception  of  the 
omens.  The  remodeling  to  which  they  were  subjected  did  not 
destroy  their  original  character  to  the  extent  that  might  have 
been  expected  —  a  circumstance  due  in  the  first  instance  to 
the  persistency  of  the  beliefs  that  called  these  texts  forth. 

Many  of  the  texts  containing  incantations  were  found  by  the 
modern  explorers  in  so  mutilated  a  condition,  that  one  can 
hardly  hazard  any  generalizations  as  to  the  system  followed  in 
putting  the  incantations  together.  From  the  fact,  however,  that 
in  so  many  instances  the  incantations  form  a  series  of  longer 
or  shorter  extent,  we  may,  for  the  present  at  least,  conclude  that 
the  serial  form  was  the  method  generally  followed  ;  and  at  all 
events,  if  not  the  general  method,  certainly  a  favorite  one. 
Deviating  from  the  ordinary  custom  of  calling  the  series 
according  to  the  opening  line  of  the  first  tablet,  the  incantation 
texts  were  given  a  distinct  title,  which  was  either  descriptive  or 
chosen  with  reference  to  their  general  contents.  So  one  series 
which  covered  at  least  sixteen  tablets  was  known  by  the  very 
natural  name  of  the  '  evil  demon  ';  the  incantations  that  it  con- 
tained being  intended  as  a  protection  against  various  classes  of 
demons.  Another  is  known  as  the  series  of  '  head  sickness,' 
and  which  deals,  though  not  exclusively,  with  various  forms  of 
derangements  having  their  seat  in  the  brain.  It  covered 
no  less  than  nine  tablets.  Two  others  bear  names  that 
are  almost  synonymous,  —  "Shurpu"  and  "  Maklu,"  both 
signifying  'burning.'  and   so  called   from  the  chief  topic  dealt 


THE   MAGICAL   TEXTS.  255 

with  in  them,  the  burning  of  images  of  the  sorcerers,  and  the 
incantations  to  be  recited  in  connection  with  this  symbolical 
act.  The  "  Maklu "  series  embraced  eight  tablets  and  con- 
tained, according  to  Tallqvisf  s  calculations,1  originally  about 
1550  lines,  or  upwards  of  9000  words.  The  "  Shurpu  "  series, 
although  embracing  nine  tablets,  appears  to  have  been  some- 
what shorter.  In  view  of  the  extensive  character  of  these 
series  we  are  justified  in  speaking  of  incantation  '  rituals.'  The 
texts  were  evidently  prepared  with  a  practical  purpose  in  view. 
The  efficacy  of  certain  formulas  having  been  demonstrated,  it 
was  obviously  of  importance  that  their  exact  form  should  be 
preserved  for  future  reference.  But  a  given  formula  was  effec- 
tive only  for  a  given  case,  or  at  most  for  certain  correlated 
cases,  and  accordingly  it  became  necessary  to  collect  as  many 
formulas  as  possible  to  cover  all  emergencies.  The  priests, 
acting  as  exorcisers,  would  be  the  ones  interested  in  making 
such  collections,  and  we  may  assume,  as  already  suggested, 
that  each  temple  would  develop  a  collection  of  its  own,  —  an 
incantation  code  that  served  as  a  guide  for  its  priests.  The 
natural  tendency  would  be  for  these  codes  to  increase  from 
generation  to  generation,  perhaps  not  rapidly,  but  steadily.  New 
cases  not  as  yet  provided  for  would  arise,  and  new  formulas 
with  new  instructions  would  be  produced;  or  the  exorcisers 
at  a  certain  temple  would  learn  of  remedies  tried  elsewhere, 
and  would  embody  them  in  their  own  special  code.  In  short, 
the  growth  of  these  incantation  '  rituals  '  was  probably  similar 
to  the  manner  in  which,  on  the  basis  of  actual  practice,  religious 
codes  grew  up  around  the  sanctuaries  of  ancient  Israel,  —  a 
process  that  terminated  in  the  production  of  the  various  codes 
and  rituals  constituting  the  legal  documents  embodied  in  the 
Pentateuch. 

The  prominence  given  to  Ea  and  to  his  favorite  seat,  the 
city  of  Eridu,  in  the  incantations  suggests  the  theory  that  many 

1  Die  Assyrische  Beschwortuigsserie,  Maqlii,  p.  14. 


256  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

of  our  texts  are  to  be  ultimately  traced  to  the  temple  of  Ea, 
that  once  stood  at  Eridu.  In  that  case  an  additional  proof 
would  be  furnished  of  the  great  antiquity  of  the  use  of  incanta- 
tions in  Babylonia.  We  must  sharply  distinguish  however,  as 
already  emphasized,  between  the  origin  and  the  present  form 
of  the  rituals.  Again,  those  parts  of  a  ritual  in  which  Gibil,  or 
Nusku,  appears  prominently  would  most  naturally  be  produced 
by  priests  connected  with  a  temple  sacred  to  the  one  or  the 
other  of  these  gods.  The  practice  of  incantation,  however, 
being  common  to  all  parts  of  Babylonia,  we  can  hardly  suppose 
that  any  temple  should  have  existed  which  did  not  have  its 
exorcising  formulas.  In  the  combination  of  these  formulas 
into  a  ritual,  due  consideration  would  naturally  be  had  to  the 
special  gods  invoked,  the  obvious  result  of  which  would  be  to 
produce  the  long  lists  of  deities  that  are  often  embodied  in  a 
single  incantation.  The  details  of  this  process  can  of  course 
no  longer  be  discerned,  but  the  inevitable  tendency  would  be 
towards  increasing  complications.  The  effort  would  be  made 
to  collect  everything,  and  from  all  known  quarters.  Hence  the 
heterogeneous  elements  to  be  detected  in  the  texts,  and  which, 
while  adding  to  their  interest,  also  increase  the  difficulty  of 
their  interpretation.  In  consequence  of  the  presence  of  such 
heterogeneous  elements,  it  is  difficult  to  determine  within  an 
incantation  series  any  guiding  principles  that  prompted  the 
collectors.  Still  we  can  often  distinguish  large  groups  in  a 
series  that  belong  together.  So  we  have  whole  series  of 
addresses  to  the  fire-god  ending  with  incantations,  and  again  a 
series  of  descriptions  of  the  group  of  seven  spirits  serving  a 
similar  purpose  as  introductions  to  incantations,  but  we  cannot 
see  on  what  grounds  the  transition  from  one  subject  to  the 
other  takes  place.  Indeed  the  transitions  are  generally  marked 
by  their  abruptness. 

The  only  legitimate  inference  is  that  the  main  purpose  of  the 
collectors  of  incantation  texts  was  to  exhaust  the  subject  so  far 


THE   MAGICAL   TEXTS.  257 

as  lay  in  their  power.  They  included  in  their  codes  as  much 
as  possible.  The  exorciser  would  have  no  difficulty  in  threading 
his  way  through  the  complicated  mass.  He  would  select  the 
division  appropriate  to  the  case  before  him  without  much  con- 
cern of  what  preceded  or  followed  in  the  text.  Moreover,  these 
divisions  in  the  texts  were  clearly  marked  by  dividing  lines, 
still  to  be  seen  on  the  clay  tablets.  These  divisions  corre- 
spond so  completely  to  divisions  in  the  subject-matter  that  the 
purely  practical  purpose  they  served  can  hardly  be  called  into 
question,  while  at  the  same  time  they  furnish  additional  proof 
for  the  compiled  character  of  the  texts. 

As  for  the  date  of  the  composition  of  the  texts,  the  union  of 
the  Babylonian  states  under  Hammurabi,  with  its  necessary 
result,  the  supremacy  of  Marduk,  that  finds  its  reflection  in  the 
texts,  furnishes  us  with  a  terminus  a  quo  beyond  which  we  need 
not  proceed  for  thzjitial  editing.  On  the  other  hand,  there  are 
indications  in  the  language  which  warrant  us  in  not  passing 
below  2000  ex.  as  the  period  when  many  of  the  incantation 
texts  received  their  present  form,  and  the  editions  were  com- 
pleted from  which  many  centuries  afterwards  the  Assyrian 
scribes  prepared  their  copies  for  their  royal  masters. 

There  is,  of  course,  no  reason  for  assuming  that  all  our  texts 
should  be  of  one  age,  or  that  the  copying  and,  in  part,  the  edit- 
ing should  not  have  gone  on  continually.  Necessity  for  further 
copies  would  arise  with  the  steady  growth  of  the  temples.  Priests 
would  be  engaged  in  making  copies  for  themselves,  either  for 
their  edification  as  a  pious  work,  or  for  real  use;  and  accordingly, 
in  fixing  upon  any  date  for  the  texts,  one  can  hardly  do  more  than 
assign  certain  broad  limits  within  which  the  texts,  so  far  as  their 
present  contents  are  concerned,  may  have  been  completed.  The 
copies  themselves  may  of  course  belong  to  a  much  later  period 
without,  for  that  reason,  being  more  recent  productions. 

Attention  must  also  be  directed  to  the  so-called  'bilingual  ' 
form,  in  which  many  of  the  incantation  texts  are  edited;  each 


258  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

line  being  fust  written  in  the  ideographic  style,  and  then  fol- 
lowed by  a  transliteration  into  the  phonetic  style.1  The  use  of 
the  ideographic  style  is  a  survival  of  the  ancient  period  when 
all  texts  were  written  in  this  manner,  and  the  conservatism 
attaching  to  all  things  religious  accounts  for  the  continuation 
of  the  ideographic  style  in  the  religious  rituals  down  to  the 
latest  period,  beyond  the  time  when  even  according  to  those 
who  see  in  the  ideographic  style  a  language  distinct  from  Baby- 
lonian, this  supposed  non-Semitic  tongue  was  no  longer  spoken 
by  the  people,  and  merely  artificially  maintained,  like  the  Latin 
of  the  Middle  Ages.  The  frequent  lack  of  correspondence  in 
minor  points  between  the  ideographic  style  and  the  phonetic 
transliteration  shows  that  the  latter  was  intended  merely  as  a 
version,  as  a  guide  and  aid  to  the  understanding  of  the  '  con- 
servative'  method  of  writing.  It  was  not  necessary  for  a  trans- 
literation to  be  accurate,  whereas,  in  the  case  of  a  translation, 
the  greatest  care  would  naturally  be  taken  to  preserve  the 
original  sacred  text  with  all  nicety  and  accuracy,  since  upon 
accuracy  and  nicety  the  whole  efficacy  of  the  formulas  rested. 
The  redaction  of  the  incantation  texts  in  the  double  style  must 
not  be  regarded  as  a  necessary  indication  of  high  antiquity,  but 
only  as  a  proof  that  the  oldest  incantation  texts  were  written  in 
the  ideographic  style,  and  that  for  this  reason  the  custom  was 
continued  down  to  the  latest  period.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
addition  of  the  transliteration  points  to  a  period  when  the  old 
style  could  no  longer  be  read  by  the  priests  with  facility  with- 
out some  guide,  and  incidentally  proves  again  that  the  texts 
have  gone  through  an  editing  process.  But  in  the  course  of 
time,  additions  to  the  ritual  were  made,  written  in  the  phonetic 
style;  and  then  it  would  happen,  as  a  concession  to  religious 
conservatism,  that  the  text  would  be  translated  back  into  the 
ideographic  form.     We  would  then   have  a  "bilingual"  text, 

1  There  are  some  preserved  solely  in  the  ideographic  style  and  others  of  which  we 
have  only  the  phonetic  transliteration. 


THE   MAGICAL   TEXTS.  259 

consisting  of  Babylonian  and  an  artificial  "  Sumero- Akkadian." 
That  incantations  were  also  composed  in  pure  Babylonian 
without  reference  to  any  "  Sumero- Akkadian"  original  is  con- 
clusively shown  by  the  metrical  traits  frequently  introduced. 
Many  of  the  sections  —  by  no  means  all  —  can  be  divided  into 
regular  stanzas  of  four,  six,  or  eight  lines,  and  frequently  to  the 
stanza  is  added  a  line  which  forms  what  Professor  D.  H.  Muller1 
calls  the  "  response."  The  same  metrical  traits  being  found  in 
other  parts  of  the  Babylonian  literature,  —  so,  e.g.,  in  the  creation 
epic,  —  their  occurrence  in  the  incantation  texts  is  of  course  not 
accidental.  When,  therefore,  we  come  across  a  ritual  as  the 
"  Maklu  "  series,  written  exclusively  in  the  phonetic  style,  and 
giving  evidence  of  being  in  part  a  metrical  composition,  we  are 
justified  in  assuming  this  to  have  been  the  ori°inal  form.  A°-ain 
in  the  case  of  another  series,  —  the  "  Shurpu,"  in  part  Baby- 
lonian, in  part  bilingual,2 —  since  the  Babylonian  section  shows 
the  metrical  form,  it  is  likely  that  the  ideographic  style  rep- 
resents a  transliteration  of  a  phonetic,  or  pure  Babylonian, 
original. 

The  chief  value  of  the  incantation  texts  lies,  naturally,  in  the 
insight  they  afford  into  the  popular  beliefs.  As  among  other 
nations,  so  among  the  Babylonians,  the  use  of  certain  formulas 
to  secure  release  from  ills,  pains,  and  evils  of  any  kind,  either 
actual  or  portending,  rests  upon  the  theory  that  the  accidents 
and  misfortunes  to  which  man  is  heir  are  due  largely  to  the 
influence  of  more  or  less  powerful  spirits  or  demons,  acting 
independently  or  at  the  command  of  higher  powers,  —  the  gods. 

Through  the  incantation  rituals  we  are  enabled- to  specify 
the  traits  popularly  ascribed  to  these  demons  and  the  means 
employed  to  rid  oneself  of  their  baneful  grasp. 

1  Die  Propheten  in  Hirer  urspriinglicken  Form,  pp.  i,  6.  This  work  is  a  valuable 
investigation  of  the  oldest  form  of  the  poetic  compositions  of  the  Semites. 

2  The  fifth  and  sixth  tablets  of  the  series.  It  is  probable  that  several  editions 
were  prepared,  —  some  wholly  Babylonian,  others  bilingual. 


260  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Demons. 

The  demons  were  of  various  kinds  and  of  various  grades  of 
power.  The  names  of  many  of  them,  as  utukku,  she  J  it,  alu, 
gallu,  point  to  '  strength  '  and  '  greatness '  as  their  main  attri- 
bute; other  names,  as  li/u, '  night-spirit,'  and  the  feminine  form 
lilitit,  are  indicative  of  the  moment  chosen  by  them  for  their 
work  ;  while  again,  names  like  ekimmu,  the  '  seizer,'  akhkhazu, 
the  '  capturer,'  rabisu,  '  the  one  that  lies  in  wait,'  labartu,  '  the 
oppressor,'  and  labasu,  'the  overthrower,'  show  the  aim  that 
the  demons  have  in  view.  Putting  these  names  together,  we 
may  form  a  general  idea  of  the  conceptions  connected  with  the 
demons.  They  lurk  in  hidden  or  remote  places,  in  graves,  in 
the  shadow  of  ruins,  on  the  tops  of  mountains,  in  the  wilder- 
ness. Their  favorite  time  of  activity  is  at  dead  of  night.  They 
glide  noiselessly  like  serpents,  entering  houses  through  holes 
and  crevices.  They  are  powerful,  but  their  power  is  directed 
solely  towards  evil.  They  take  firm  hold  of  their  victims  and 
torture  them  mercilessly. 

To  these  demons  all  manner  of  evil  is  ascribed.  Their  pres- 
ence was  felt  in  the  destructive  winds  that  swept  the  land. 
The  pestilent  fevers  that  rise  out  of  the  marshes  of  the  Euphra- 
tes valley  and  the  diseases  bred  by  the  humid  heat  of  summer 
were  alike  traced  to  demons  lurking  in  the  soil.  Some  of  these 
diseases,  moreover,  were  personified,  as  Namtar,  the  demon 
of  '  plague,'  and  Ashakku,  the  demon  of  '  wasting  disease.' 
But  the  petty  annoyances  that  disturb  the  peace  of  man — a 
sudden  fall,  an  unlucky  word,  a  headache,  petty  quarrels,  and 
the  like  —  were  also  due  to  the  instigation  of  the  demons;  while 
insanity  and  the  stirring  up  of  the  passions  —  love,  hatred,  and 
jealousy  —  were  in  a  special  sense  indicative  of  the  presence 
and  power  of  the  demons.  Men  and  women  stood  in  constant 
danger  of  them.  Even  the  animals  were  not  safe  from  their 
attacks.     They  drive  the  birds  out  of  their  nests,  strike  down 


THE   MAGICAL   TEXTS.  261 

lambs  and  bulls.  It  was  impossible  to  forestall  their  attacks. 
They  enter  a  man's  dwelling,  they  wander  through  the  streets, 
they  make  their  way  into  food  and  drink.  There  is  no  place, 
however  small,  which  they  cannot  invade,  and  none,  however 
large,  that  they  cannot  fill.  In  a  text  which  furnishes  the  sacred 
formulas  by  means  of  which  one  can  get  rid  of  the  demoniac 
influence,  a  description  is  given  of  the  demons  which  may 
serve  as  an  illustration  of  what  has  just  been  said.  The  incan- 
tation is  directed  against  a  variety  of  the  demons  : x 

The  utukku  -  of  the  field  and  the  utukku  of  the  mountain, 
The  utukku  of  the  sea  and  the  one  that  lurks  in  graves, 
The  evil  s/iedu,  the  shining  alu, 
The  evil  wind,  the  terrible  wind, 
That  sets  one's  hair  on  end. 

Against  these  the  spirits  of  heaven  and  earth  are  invoked. 
The  text  proceeds  : 

The  utukku  that  seizes  hold  of  a  man, 
The  ekimmu  that  seizes  hold  of  a  man, 
The  ekimmu  that  works  evil, 
The  utukku  that  works  evil. 

And  after  invoking  against  these  demons,  likewise,  the  spirits 
of  heaven  and  earth,  the  text  passes  on  to  an  enumeration  of  a 
long  list  of  physical  ills  :  sickness  of  the  entrails,  of  the  heart, 
of  the  head,  of  the  stomach,  of  the  kidneys,  of  the  limbs  and 
muscles,  of  the  skin,  and  of  the  senses,  which  are  all  ascribed 
to  the  influence  of  the  demons. 

Apart  from  the  demons  that  are  naught  but  the  personification 
of  certain  diseases,  it  does  not  appear  that  the  demons  were 
limited  in  their  power  to  one  specific  kind  of  action.  In  other 
words,  sharp  distinctions  between  the  demons  do  not  appear 
to  have   been   drawn.      As  appears  from   the   extracts   above 

1  Haupt,  Akkadische  und  Sumerische  Keilschrifttexte,  p.  83,  col.  i.  11.  1-10. 

2  Wherever  feasible,  the  Babylonian  name  of  the  demon  will  be  used  in  the  trans- 
lations. 


262  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

translated,  the  utukku,  shedu,  alu,  and  ekimmu  were  grouped 
together,  and  hardly  regarded  as  anything  more  than  descrip- 
tive epithets  of  a  general  class  of  demons.  At  the  same  time 
it  appears  likely  that  at  one  time  they  were  differentiated  with 
a  greater  degree  of  preciseness.  So  the  ekimmu  appears  to  be 
the  shadowy  demon  that  hovers  around  graves,  a  species  of 
ghost  or  vampire  that  attacks  people  in  the  dead  of  night 
and  lays  them  prostrate.  Lilu  and  lilitu  are  the  spirits  that 
flit  by  in  the  night.  Of  a  specific  character  likewise  are 
the  conceptions  connected  with  a  demon  known  as  ardat  ////, 
'maid  of  the  night,'  a  strange  female  'will-o'-the-wisp,'  who 
approaches  men,  arouses  their  passions,  but  does  not  permit  a 
satisfaction  of  them.  Great  importance  being  attached  by  the 
Babylonians  to  dreams,  the  belief  in  a  '  maid  of  the  night '  was 
probably  due  to  the  unchecked  play  of  the  imagination  during 
the  hours  of  sleep.  Bad  dreams  came  at  the  instigation  of  the 
demons,  and  such  a  demon  as  the  rabisu  or  the  labartu  appears 
to  have  been  especially  associated  with  the  horrible  sensations 
aroused  by  a  'nightmare.'1  Again  the  utukku  is  represented 
at  times  as  attacking  the  neck  of  man ;  the  gallu  attacks  the 
hand,  the  ekimmu  the  loins,  the  alu  the  breast.  But  these  dis- 
tinctions count  for  little  in  the  texts.  Utukku  becomes  a  gen- 
eral name  for  demon,  and  gallu,  alu,  and  shedu  are  either  used 
synonymously  with  utukku  or  thrown  together  with  the  latter 
in  a  manner  that  clearly  shows  the  general  identity  of  the  con- 
ceptions ultimately  connected  with  them.  The  same  is  the 
case  with  the  rabisu  and  gallu,  with  the  labartu,  aklikliazu,  and 
ekimmu. 

The  demons  were  always  given  some  shape,  animal  or 
human,  for  it  was  a  necessary  corollary  of  the  stage  of  religious 
thought  to  which  the  belief  in  demons  belongs,  that  the  demon 
must  not  only  be  somewhere,  though   invisible  to  mankind,  but 

1  i  iiir  wind  '  nightmare  '  still  embodies  the  same  ancient  view  of  the  cause  of  bad 
dreams  as  that  found  among  the  Babylonians. 


THE   MAGICAL   TEXTS.  263 

also  in  something  that  manifests  life.  Among  animals,  those 
calculated  to  inspire  terror  by  their  mysterious  movements 
were  chosen,  as  serpents  appearing  and  disappearing  with 
startling  suddenness,  or  ugly  scorpions,  against  whom  it  was 
difficult  to  protect  oneself,  or  the  fabulous  monsters  with  which 
graves  and  pestiferous  spots  were  peopled.  Regions  difficult 
of  access — the  desert,  the  deep  waters,  the  high  mountains  — 
were  the  favorite  haunts  of  the  demons.  Some  of  these  demons 
were  frequently  pictured  in  the  boundary  stones  between  fields, 
in  order  to  emphasize  the  curses  hurled  upon  the  head  of  him 
who  should  trespass  on  the  lawful  rights  of  the  owner  of  the 
land.1  It  is  to  such  demons  embodied  in  living  form  that 
epithets  such  as  the  'seizer,'  the  'one  that  lurks,'  and  the  like 
apply  with  peculiar  aptness.  In  a  tablet  belonging  to  a  long 
series  of  incantations,2  we  find  references  to  various  animals  — 
the  serpent,  the  scorpion,  monsters  —  that  are  regarded  as  the 
embodiment  of  demons. 

In  the  distinctively  religious  art,  the  evil  spirits  are  often 
pictured  as  ugly  monsters  that  were  to  inspire  terror  by  their 
very  aspect.  Depicted  on  the  monuments,  singly  or  in  groups," 
the  shape  of  wild  animals  was  given  to  the  head,  while  the 
remainder  of  the  body  was  suggestive  of  a  human  form.  With 
gaping  mouths  and  armed  with  some  weapon,  they  stand  ready 
to  make  an  attack.  The  Assyrian  kings,  up  to  the  latest  period, 
acknowledged  the  power  of  the  demons  by  making  huge  repre- 
sentations of  them,  which  they  placed  at  the  approaches, 
entrances,  and  divisions  of  their  temples  and  palaces,  in  the 
hope  of  thus  securing  their  protection.  The  great  bulls  and 
lions  with  human  heads  —  so  familiar  to  every  one  —  are  but 
another  form  of  the  same  idea.  These  colossal  statues  were 
actually   known    by   the  name  shedu,  which  we  have  seen   is 

1  See  above,  p.  1S2. 
2IVR.  pi.  5. 

3  See  Perrot  and  Chipiez,  History  of  Art  in  Chaldaea  am/  Assyria,  i.  61,62; 
ii.  81  for  illustrations. 


264  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

one  of  the  general  terms  tor  'demon.'  But  as  a  general  thing, 
this  personal  phase  of  the  demon's  existence  is  lost  sight  of. 
Even  though  embodied  in  animal  form,  the  demons  could  make 
themselves  invisible  to  man  ;  and  since  most  of  their  actions 
were  performed  in  secret,  so  that  people  were  totally  at  their 
mercy,  the  differentiation  of  the  demons  became  a  factor  of 
minor  importance.  With  so  large  a  quantity  of  demons  at 
command,  it  was  difficult  to  hit  upon  the  one  who  was  manifest- 
ing himself  by  some  evil  at  any  given  moment.  Accordingly, 
instead  of  a  single  mention,  a  number  or  a  group  were  enumer- 
ated, and  the  magic  formulas  pronounced  against  them  in 
concert.  We  have  one  such  group  of  seven  to  whom  quite 
a  number  of  references  are  found  in  the  incantation  texts.  A 
section  in  one  of  these  texts  gives  a  vivid  description  of  them: 1 

Seven  are  they,  they  are  seven, 

In  the  subterranean  deep,  they  are  seven, 

Perched  (?)  in  the  sky,  they  are  seven, 

In  a  section  of  the  subterranean  deep  they  were  reared, 

They  are  neither  male  nor  are  they  female, 

They  are  destructive  whirlwinds, 

They  have  no  wife,  nor  do  they  beget  offspring. 

Compassion  and  mercy  they  do  not  know, 

Prayer  and  supplication  they  do  not  hear, 

Horses  bred  on  the  mountains,  are  they 

Hostile  to  Ea2  are  they, 

Powerful  ones  among  the  gods  are  they. 

To  work  mischief  in  the  street  they  settle  themselves  in  the  highway. 

Evil  are  they,  they  are  evil. 

Seven  are  they,  they  are  seven,  seven,  and  again  seven3  are  they. 

These  seven  spirits,  who  are  elsewhere  compared  to  various 
animals,  have  power  even  to  bewitch  the  gods.  The  eclipse  of 
the  moon  was  attributed  to  their  baneful  influence.     The  num- 

1  IV  K.  2,  col.  v.  11.  30-60. 

2  The  god  of  humanity.     The  phrase  is  equivalent  to  saying  that  the  spirits  are 
hostile  to  mankind. 

::  I  .iterally,  '  to  their  second  time,'  /'.<'.,  repeat  '  seven  are  they.' 


THE  MAGICAL   TEXTS.  265 

ber  seven  is  probably  not  to  be  taken  literally.  As  among  so 
many  nations,1  seven  had  a  sacred  significance  for  the  Babylon- 
ians ;  but  largely,  if  not  solely,  for  the  reason,  as  I  venture  to 
think,  because  seven  was  a  large  number.  In  the  Old  Testa- 
ment seven  is  similarly  used  to  designate  a  large  number.  A 
group  of  seven  spirits,  accordingly,  meant  no  more  than  a  mis- 
cellaneous mass  of  spirits,  and  we  may  therefore  regard  this 
'  song  of  the  seven  '  as  a  general  characterization  of  the  demons 
who,  according  to  this  view,  appear  to  move  together  in  groups 
rather  than  singly.  Elsewhere2  we  are  told  of  this  same 
group  of  spirits  '  that  they  were  begotten  in  the  mountain  of 
sunset,'  i.e.,  in  the  west,  '  and  were  reared  in  the  mountain  of 
sunrise,'  i.e.,  the  east;  'that  they  dwell  in  the  hollow  of  the 
earth,  and  that  they  are  proclaimed  on  the  mountain  tops.' 
Evidently  a  description  of  this  kind  is  intended  to  emphasize 
the  universal  presence  of  the  spirits.  There  is  no  place  where 
they  are  not  found ;  and  when  we  are  furthermore  told  (appar- 
ently in  contradiction  to  what  has  just  been  said)  '  that  neither 
in  heaven  nor  earth  is  their  name  pronounced  (i.e.,  are  they 
known  to  be),  that  among  the  gods  of  the  earth  (i.e.,  the  pan- 
theon) they  are  not  recognized,  that  neither  in  heaven  nor 
earth  do  they  exist,'  this  is  but  the  reverse  of  the  picture 
intended  to  illustrate  the  capability  of  the  spirits  to  disappear 
without  leaving  any  trace  of  their  presence.  They  are  every- 
where and  yet  invisible.  They  come  and  they  go,  and  no  one 
knows  their  place.  Nothing  is  proof  against  their  approach. 
Of  all  the  demons  it  is  true,  as  of  this  group,  that  they  slip 
through  bolts  and  doorposts  and  sockets,  gliding,  as  we  are 
told,  'like  snakes.'  Such  are  the  demons  against  whom  man 
must  seek  to  protect  himself. 

The  relationship  of  the  demons  or  spirits  to  the  gods  of  the 
pantheon  has  been  touched  upon  in  a  previous  chapter.3     It  is 

1  See  Hopkins,  T/te  Holy  Numbers  in  the  Rig-Veda  (Oriental  Studies),  pp.  144-147. 

2  1VR.  15,  col.  ii.  21  seq.  3  See  chapter  xi. 


266  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

sufficient  here  to  emphasize  the  fact  that  the  dividing  line 
between  the  two  becomes  at  times  exceedingly  faint.  A  deity, 
we  have  seen,  is  a  spirit  writ  large;  but  often  the  demon  assumes 
dimensions  and  is  clothed  with  power  that  makes  him  '  little 
short  of  divine.'  Strength  is  the  attribute  of  the  demons  as  it 
is  the  chief  feature  of  the  gods.  Both  classes  of  powers  influ- 
ence man's  career.  The  names  of  the  demons  are  preceded  by 
the  same  determinative  that  is  used  for  the  gods.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  many  of  the  spirits  were  originally  worshipped  as  local 
deities  in  some  restricted  territory,  which,  losing  its  importance, 
bequeaths  the  name  of  its  protective  genius  to  posterity.  In 
the  realm  of  religious  belief,  as  in  the  domain  of  nature,  abso- 
lute loss  of  something  that  once  had  existence  does  not  take 
place.  Something  remains.  Hundreds  of  old  local  gods  of 
Babylonia  thus  survived  in  the  literature  as  spirits  or  demons. 
The  tendency  towards  making  a  selection  out  of  the  great  mass 
of  gods  goes  hand  in  hand  with  the  multiplication  of  spirits 
that  might,  as  occasion  presented  itself,  be  invoked.  In  general, 
the  larger  affairs  of  life  were  consigned  into  the  hands  of  the 
gods;  the  petty  annoyances —  accidents,  pains,  ill  luck,  and  the 
like  —  were  put  down  to  the  account  of  the  spirits.  The  gods 
were,  on  the  whole,  favorably  disposed  towards  man.  They 
were  angry  at  times,  they  sent  punishments,  but  they  could  be 
appeased.  The  spirits  were,  on  the  whole,  hostile;  and  although 
the  Babylonians  also  invoked  favorable  and  kind  spirits,  when 
a  spirit  was  hostile  there  was  only  one  method  of  ridding  one- 
self of  the  pernicious  influence, —  to  drive  it  out  by  means  of 
formulas,  and  with  the  help  of  a  priest  acting  as  exorciser. 

Sorcerers  and  Sorceresses. 

A  widespread  and  apparently  very  ancient  belief  among  the 
Babylonians  and  Assyrians  was  that  certain  human  beings  pos- 
sessed demoniac-  power,  and  could  exercise  it  for  evil  purposes 
over  whomsoever  they  pleased.    This  belief  may  have  originated 


THE   MAGICAL    TEXTS.  267 

in  the  abnormal  appearance  presented  by  certain  individuals 
in  consequence  of  physical  deformities  or  peculiarities.  The 
uncanny  impression  made  by  dwarfs,  persons  with  misshapen 
limbs,  with  a  strange  look  in  their  eyes,  and,  above  all,  the 
insane  would  give  rise  to  the  view  that  some  people,  for  the 
very  reason  of  their  variation  from  the  normal  type,  possessed 
peculiar  powers.  But  by  the  side  of  such  as  were  distinguished 
by  bodily  defects,  those  who  outranked  their  fellows  by  virtue 
of  their  prowess  or  of  natural  gifts,  by  keenness  of  intellect  or 
cunning,  would  also  be  supposed  to  have  received  their  power 
through  some  demoniac  source.  With  the  giant  and  the 
artificer  there  would  thus  be  associated  ideas  of  sorcery  and 
witchcraft,  as  with  dwarfs,  the  deformed,  and  insane.  The 
sorcerers  might  be  either  male  or  female,  but,  for  reasons  which 
are  hard  to  fathom,  the  preference  was  given  to  females. 
Accordingly,  it  happens  that  among  the  Babylonians,  as  in  the 
Middle  Ages,  the  witch  appears  more  frequently  than  the  male 
sorcerer.  The  witches  have  all  the  powers  of  the  demons,  and 
in  the  incantation  texts  the  two  are  often  thrown  together.  Just 
as  the  demons,  so  the  witches  take  away  the  breath  of  man, 
defile  his  food  and  drink,  or  close  up  his  mouth.  They  are 
able  to  penetrate  into  the  body  of  men,  and  thus  produce 
similar  physical  and  mental  disturbances  as  the  animalic 
demons.  In  view  of  this  close  relationship  between  witches 
and  demons,  we  are  justified  in  regarding  the  two  as  varying 
aspects  of  one  and  the  same  belief.  The  witch  appears  to 
be  merely  the  person  through  whom  the  hitherto  '  invisible  ' 
demon  has  chosen  to  manifest  itself.  From  being  identical 
in  character  with  the  demons,  the  witches  reached  a  stage 
which  made  them  superior  to  the  former.  They  could  not 
only  do  everything  that  the  demons  did,  but  they  could  also 
control  the  latter,  whereas  the  demons  had  no  power  over 
witches.  Witches  could  invoke  the  demons  at  their  will  and 
bring  such  persons  as  they  chose   within  the  demons'  power. 


268  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Various  means  were  at  their  disposal  for  bringing  this  about. 
The  glance  of  a  witch's  'evil  eye  '  was  supposed  to  have  great 
power.1  Terrible  were  the  sufferings  of  the  one  on  whom  a 
witch  threw  the  glance  that  kept  the  person  under  her  spell. 
The  '  evil  word,'  as  it  was  called,  and  by  which  the  use  of  cer- 
tain magic  formulas  was  meant,  was  another  effective  means  at 
her  command  for  inflicting  all  manner  of  evil.  Magical  potions, 
too,  compounded  of  poisonous  weeds,  appear  to  have  been  pre- 
pared by  them,  and  which,  entering  the  body  of  those  whom 
they  desired  to  punish,  had  a  disastrous  effect.  Such  means 
might  be  denominated  as  direct.  There  were  others  indirect 
which  were  even  more  effective,  and  which  rested  upon  the 
principle  commonly  known  as  '  sympathetic  magic' 2  Under 
the  notion  that  the  symbolical  acts  of  the  sorcerers  would  have 
their  effect  upon  the  one  to  be  bewitched,  the  male  sorcerer  or 
the  witch,  as  the  case  might  be,  would  tie  knots  in  a  rope. 
Repeating  certain  formulas  with  each  fresh  knot,  the  witch 
would  in  this  way  symbolically  strangle  the  victim,  seal  his 
mouth,   wrack  his  limbs,   tear  his  entrails,   and  the  like. 

Still  more  popular  was  the  making  of  an  image  of  the  desired 
victim  of  clay  or  pitch,  honey,  fat,  or  other  soft  material,3  and 
either  by  burning  it  inflict  physical  tortures  upon  the  person 
represented,  or  by  undertaking  various  symbolical  acts  with  it, 
such  as  burying  it  among  the  dead,  placing  it  in  a  coffin,  cast- 
ing it  into  a  pit  or  into  a  fountain,  hiding  it  in  an  inaccessible 
place,  placing  it  in  spots  that  had  a  peculiar  significance,  as 
the  doorposts,  the  threshold,  under  the  arch  of  gates,  would 
prognosticate  in  this  way  a  fate  corresponding  to  one  of  these 
acts  for  the  unfortunate  victim. 

1  For   thr    general    virus     ,n nl    with    the  evil   eye   among  all  nations,  see 

Elworthy's  recent  volume,  The  Evil  Eye.     (London,  1896.) 

-  For  illustrations  taken  from  various  nations,  see  Fraser,  The  Golden  Bough,  ii. 
0,-12  :  ii.  85   89. 

:)  Sit  fin  illustrations  of  similar  practices  among  Egyptians  and  Greeks,  Budge, 
Life  and  Exploits  of  .  llexander  the  Great  (London,  1S96),  pp.  xii-xvii. 


THE   MAGICAL    TEXTS.  269 

The  Exorcisers. 

As  a  protection  against  the  demons  and  witches,  small  images 
of  some  of  the  protecting  deities  were  placed  at  the  entrances 
to  houses,  and  amulets  of  various  kinds  were  carried  about  the 
person.  Tablets,  too,  were  hung  up  in  the  house,  —  probably 
at  the  entrance,  —  on  which  extracts  from  the  religious  texts 
were  inscribed.  These  texts  by  virtue  of  their  sacred  character 
assured  protection  against  the  entrance  of  demons.1  But  when 
once  a  person  had  come  under  the  baneful  power  of  the  demons, 
recourse  was  had  to  a  professional  class  of  exorcisers,  who 
acted  as  mediators  between  the  victims  and  the  gods  to  whom 
the  ultimate  appeal  for  help  was  made.  These  exorcisers  were 
of  course  priests,  and  at  an  early  period  of  Babylonian  culture 
it  must  have  been  one  of  the  main  functions  of  priests  to  com- 
bat the  influence  of  evil  spirits.  It  was  for  this  purpose  chiefly 
that  the  people  came  to  the  temples,  and  in  so  far  we  are  justi- 
fied in  regarding  incantation  formulas  as  belonging  to  the  oldest 
portion  of  the  Babylonian  temple  rituals.  In  the  course  of 
time,  as  the  temples  in  the  great  religious  centers  developed  into 
large  establishments,  the  priests  were-divided  into  classes,  each 
with  special  functions  assigned  to  them.  Some  were  concerned 
with  the  sacrifices,  others  presided  over  the  oracles,  others  were 
set  aside  for  the  night  and  day  watches  which  were  observed  in 
the  temple,  and  it  is  likely  that  the  scribes  formed  a  class  by 
themselves.  To  this  age  of  differentiation  in  priestly  functions 
belongs  the  special  class  who  may  be  regarded  as  the  forerun- 
ners of  the  eastern  magi  or  magicians,  and  who  by  powers  and 
methods  peculiar  to  them  could  ward  off  the  dangerous  attacks 

1  Mr.  L.  W.  King  describes  (Zeits.fiir  Assyr.  xi.  50-62)  interesting  fragments  of 
the  Dibbarra  (or  '  plague-god  ')  legend  found  on  tablets  which  were  evidently  intended 
to  be  hung  up.  Mr.  King  suggests  that  such  tablets  were  hung  up  in  the  houses  of 
the  Babylonians  whenever  a  plague  broke  out.  One  is  reminded  of  the  mczuzoth, 
the  metallic  or  wooden  cases,  attached  to  the  doorposts  of  their  houses  by  the  Jews, 
and  which  originally  served  a  similar  purpose. 


270  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION.      ■ 

of  the  demons  and  witches.  The  means  employed  by  them 
may  in  general  be  described  as  forming  the  complement  to 
those  used  by  the  witches, — the  reverse  side  of  the  picture, — 
only  that  they  were  supposed  to  be  effective  against  sorcerers, 
witches,  and  demons  alike.  Against  the  incantation  formulas 
of  the  witches,  incantations  of  superior  force  were  prescribed 
that  might  serve  to  overcome  the  baneful  influence  of  the 
former.  The  symbolical  tying  of  knots  was  offset  by  symbol- 
ical loosening,  accompanied  by  formulas  that  might  effect  the 
gradual  release  of  the  victim  from  the  meshes  of  both  the 
witches  and  the  demons  ;  or  the  hoped-for  release  was  symbolized 
by  the  peeling  of  the  several  skins  of  an  onion.  Correspond- 
ing to  the  images  made  by  the  witches,  the  exorcising  priests 
advised  the  making  of  counter  images  of  the  witches,  and  by 
a  symbolical  burning,  accompanied  by  certain  ceremonies  and 
conciliatory  gifts  to  the  gods,  hoped  to  destroy  the  witches 
themselves.  Since,  moreover,  the  favorite  time  chosen  by  the 
demons  and  witches  for  their  manifestations  was  the  night,  the 
three  divisions  of  the  nights  —  evening,  midnight,  and  dawn- 
that  correspond  to  the  temple  watches  were  frequently  selected 
as  the  time  for  the  incantations  and  the  symbolical  acts.  The 
address  was  often  made  to  the  gods  of  night.  A  series  of 
incantation  formulas  begins  : 

I  call  upon  you,  gods  of  the  night, 

With  you  I  call  upon  the  night,  the  veiled  bride,1 

I  call  at  evening,  midnight,  and  at  dawn. 

The  formulas  themselves,  as  we  shall  see,  are  characterized 
by  their  large  number  rather  than  by  any  elements  that  they 
have  in  common.     At  times  they  constitute  a  direct  appeal  to 

1  Tallqvist,  Assyr.  Beschw'drungsserie  Maklu,^.  115,  suggests  that  the  'veiled 
bride'  may  be  a  name  of  some  goddess  of  the  night.  This  is  improbable.  It 
sounds  more  like  a  direct  personification  of  the  night,  tor  which  an  epithet  as 'veiled 
bride'  seems  appropriate.  The  name  may  have  arisen  in  consequence  of  mytho- 
logical conceptions  affecting  the  relationship  between  day  and  night. 


THE   MAGICAL    TEXTS.  271 

some  god  or  gods,  to  some  particular  spirit,  or  to  the  associated 
spirits  of  heaven  and  earth,  together  with  a  direct  indication  of 
what  is  desired.  An  incantation  addressed  to  Nusku,  the  god 
of  fire,  closes  : 

Fire-god,  mighty  and  lofty  one  of  the  gods, 
Who  dost  overpower  the  wicked  and  the  hostile, 
Overpower  them  (the  witches)  so  that  I  be  not  destroyed. 
Let  me  thy  servant  live,  let  me 
unharmed  stand  before  thee, 
Thou  art  my  god,  thou  art  mylord, 
Thou  art  my  judge,  thou  art  my  helper, 
Thou  art  my  avenger. 

Preceding  the  direct  appeal,  there  is  usually  a  recital  more  or 
less  detailed  of  the  woes  with  which  one  is  afflicted.  The 
victim  tells  of  the  pains  which  torture  him.  Says  one 
bewitched  : 

I  stand  upright,  and  cannot  lie  down, 

neither  night  nor  day.     The  witches  have  filled  my 

mouth  with  their  knots. 

With  the  aid  of  upuntu  weed,1 

they  have  stuffed  up  my  mouth. 

The  water  that  I  drink  have  they  diminished, 

My  joy  is  changed  to  pain,  my  pleasure  to  sorrow. 

This  recital,  which  is  often  wearisome  by  its  length,  may  or 
may  not  end  in  a  direct  appeal  to  some  god  or  gods.  The 
narrative  of  woes,  however,  is  merely  introductory  to  the  incan- 
tation itself.  To  prescribe  the  formula  to  be  used  to  the  one 
appealing  for  help,  is  the  special  function  of  the  priest  acting 
as  exorciser.  He  recites  the  formula,  which  is  then  repeated 
by  the  communicant. 

Instead  of  an  appeal  to  the  gods  for  help,  the  incantation 
often  embodies  threats  hurled  in  the  name  of  the  gods  at  the 
demons  or  witches  in  case  they  do  not  release  their  victim. 

1  A  magic  potion  compounded  of  this  plant.     '  Maklu  '  series,  i.  11.  S-12. 


272  BABYLONIAN-.  1SS )  A'/. TN  RELIGION. 

Such  incantations  appear  to  derive  their  power  chiefly  through 
the  personage  of  the  exorciser,  who  believes  himself  to  be  able 
to  control  the  evil  spirits.  So  in  one  case,  after  the  sufferer 
has  poured  out  his  troubles,  the  exorciser  replies,  threatening 
the  witches  with  the  same  evils  that  they  have  inflicted  :  l 

They  have  used  all  kinds  of  charms 

to  entwine  me  as  with  ropes, 

to  catch  me  as  in  a  cage, 

to  tie  me  as  with  cords, 

to  overpower  me  as  in  a  net*, 

to  twist  me  as  with  a  sling, 

to  tear  me  as  a  fabric, 

to  fill  me  with  dirty  water  as  that  which  runs  down  a  wall  (?) 

to  throw  me  down  as  a  wall. 

At  this  point  the  exorciser  takes  up  the  thread  and  declares : 

But  I  by  command  of  Marduk,  the  lord  of  charms, 

by  Marduk,  the  master  of  bewitchment, 

Both  the  male  and  female  witch 

as  with  ropes  I  will  entwine, 

as  in  a  cage  I  will  catch, 

as  with  cords  I  will  tie, 

as  in  a  net  I  will  overpower, 

as  in  a  sling  I  will  twist, 

as  a  fabric  I  will  tear, 

with  dirty  water  as  from  a  wall  I  will  fill, 

as  a  wall  throw  them  down. 

Accompanying  these  threats,  the  actions  indicated  were  sym- 
bolically performed  by  the  exorciser  on  effigies  of  the  witches 
made,  in  this  case,  of  bitumen  covered  with  pitch. 

Corresponding  again  to  the  potions  prepared  by  the  witches, 
the  priests  prepared  draughts  compounded  of  various  weeds 
and  herbs  that  were  given  to  the  victim,  or  concoctions  that 
were  poured  over  his  body.  This  constituted  the  medicinal 
phase  of  the  priest's  labors,  and  marks  the  connection  between 

i  '  Maklu'  series,  ii.  11.  [48-168. 


THE   MAGICAL    TEXTS.  Ill 

magic  and  medicine.     Naturally  such  herbs  and  weeds  were 
chosen  as  through  experience  had  proved  effective. 

The  Gods  ok  the  Incantation  Texts. 

A  feature  of  the  incantation  texts  is  the  appeal  to  the  gods, 
which  is  seldom,  if  ever,  wanting.  Just  as  the  kings  sought, 
by  the  enumeration  of  a  large  pantheon,  to  secure  the  protec- 
tion of  as  large  a  number  of  powers  as  possible,  so  the  priests 
endeavored  to  strengthen  their  magic  formulas  by  including  the 
mention  of  all  the  chief  and  a  varying  number  of  the  minor 
deities.  This  invocation  of  groups  of  deities,  as  the  invocation 
of  groups  of  spirits,  became  more  or  less  conventional,  so  much 
so  that,  instead  of  mentioning  the  gods  individually,  the  scribe 
would  content  himself  with  an  indication,  at  the  proper  point, 
of  the  number  of  gods  to  be  appealed  to,  —  six,  ten,  fifteen,  as  the 
case  may  be,  to  as  many  as  fifty.1  Precisely  what  gods  he  had 
in  mind  we  are  no  longer  in  a  position  to  know,  but  no  doubt 
the  chief  members  of  the  pantheon  were  included  in  the  first 
place.  Lists  of  these  deities  are  often  added.  The  superior 
triad,  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea,  head  the  list,  at  times  accompanied  by 
their  consorts,  at  times  standing  alone.  The  second  class  of 
triads,  Sin,  Shamash,  and  Ramman,  follow,  and  then  the  other 
great  gods,  Nin-ib,  Marcluk,  Nergal,  Nusku,  and  Gibil  ;  and 
finally  the  chief  goddesses  are  added,  notably  Ishtar,  Nin- 
karrak,  or  Gula,  and  Bau. 

But  besides  the  chief  deities,  an  exceedingly  large  number 
of  minor  ones  are  found  interspersed  through  the  incantation 
texts.  Some  are  well  known,  as  Nin-girsu,  Zamama,  and 
Papsukal.  Many  of  them  are  found  in  other  branches  of  the 
religious  literature  or  in  invocations  attached  to  historical 
texts,  commemorative  of  some  work  undertaken  and  completed 

1  See  Reisner,  Sumerisch-Babylonische  Hymnen  (Berlin,  1S96),  p.  15. 


274  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

by  the  kings;  but  a  large  proportion  of  these  powers,  not  often 
distinguishable  from  mere  spirits,  only  appear  once  in  the  lit- 
erary remains  of  Babylonia.  It  is  manifestly  impossible,  under 
such  circumstances,  to  specify  their  traits.  In  most  cases, 
indeed,  the  phonetic  reading  is  unknown  or  uncertain.  While 
a  considerable  proportion  may  be  put  down  as  local  gods, 
enjoying  an  independent,  albeit  obscure,  existence,  at  least  an 
equal  number  will  turn  out  to  be  mere  epithets  of  gods  already 
known.  In  all  cases  where  the  god's  name  actually  appears  as 
an  epithet,  we  may  be  certain  that  such  is  the  case.  So  when 
a  god  is  called  simply  Dainu,  i.e.,  Judge,  there  can  be  little 
doubt  that  Shamash,  the  sun-god,  is  meant ;  a  god,  '  great 
mountain,'  is  none  other  than  Bel;  and  similarly,  such  names 
as  '  merciful,'  '  hearer  of  prayer,'  '  conqueror  of  enemy '  are 
manifestly  titles  belonging  to  certain  well-known  deities,  and 
used  much  as  among  the  Greeks  the  gods  were  often  referred 
to  by  the  traits,  physical  or  moral,  that  distinguished  them.  As 
for  the  residue,  who  are  independent  deities,  while  of  course 
our  knowledge  of  the  Babylonian  religion  would  be  increased 
did  we  know  more  of  them  than  their  names,  it  is  not  likely 
that  the  worship  of  these  gods,  nor  the  conceptions  connected 
with  them,  involved  any  new  principle.  A  mere  enumeration 
would  of  course  be  of  little  use.  Moreover,  such  an  enumera- 
tion would  not  be  exhaustive,  for  new  deities  are  found  in 
almost  every  additional  text  that  is  published.  Already  this 
list  counts  considerably  over  two  hundred.  At  most,  such  an 
enumeration  would  merely  illustrate  what  we  already  know,  - 
the  exceedingly  large  number  of  local  cults  that  once  existed  in 
Babylonia  and  Assyria,  and  disappeared  without  leaving  any 
trace  but  the  more  or  less  accidental  preservation  of  the  name 
of  the  deity,  who  was  once  regarded  as  the  patron  of  the  place. 
Lastly  it  is  to  be  noted  that,  besides  gods,  stars  are  invoked,  as 
well  as  rivers,  temples,  and  even  towns,  —  in  short,  anything 
that  has  sacred  associations. 


THE   MAGICAL    TEXTS.  21 S 

On  a  different  level  from  the  gods  enumerated  in  groups 
stand  those  deities  who  are  introduced  into  the  incantation 
texts  at  essential  points  individually  and  for  a  special  reason. 
Such  deities  are  comparatively  few,  —  hardly  more  than  half  a 
dozen.  These  gods  may  be  called  the  gods  of  the  incantation 
texts  par  excellence.  Their  help  is  essential  to  ensure  the  effec- 
tiveness of  the  exorciser's  task.  They  stand  in  close  and 
direct  connection  with  the  troubles  from  which  relief  is  prayed 
for.  For  physical  ills,  they  act  as  healers.  If  the  evil  for 
which  the  individual  or  the  country  suffers  is  due  to  some  natu- 
ral phenomena,  —  an  eclipse  of  the  moon,  of  which  people  stood 
in  great  terror,  or  a  deluge  or  a  famine,  —  the  moon-god,  the 
storm-god,  some  phase  of  the  sun-deity,  or  an  agricultural  god 
would  naturally  be  implored ;  while  in  a  general  way  the  heads 
of  the  pantheon,  Marduk  in  Babylonia  and  Ashur  in  Assyria, 
come  in  for  a  large  share  of  attention. 

As  already  intimated  in  a  previous  chapter,1  the  god  who 
plays  perhaps  the  most  prominent  role  in  the  incantation  texts 
is  Ea.  He  occupies  this  rank  primarily  by  virtue  of  his  being 
the  god  of  humanity;  but  another  factor  which  enters  into  con- 
sideration, though  in  an  indirect  fashion,  is  his  character  as  a 
water-god.  Water,  being  one  of  the  means  of  purification  fre- 
quently referred  to  in  the  texts,  acquires  a  symbolical  signifi- 
cance among  the  Babylonians,  as  among  so  many  other  nations. 
Ea,  therefore,  as  the  water-god  of  the  ancient  sacred  town, 
Eridu,  acquires  additional  popularity  through  this  circumstance. 
The  titles  that  he  receives  in  the  texts  emphasize  his  power  to 
heal  and  protect.  He  is  the  great  physician  who  knows  all 
secret  sources  whence  healing  can  be  obtained  for  the  maladies 
and  ills  caused  by  the  demons  and  sorcerers.  He  is  therefore 
in  a  peculiar  sense  '  the  lord  of  the  fates  '  of  mankind,  the  chief 
exorciser,  the  all-wise  magician  of  the  gods,  at  whose  command 
and  under  whose  protection,  the  priest  performs  his  symbolical 

l  See  p.  137. 


276  BABYL0A1AA    ,1SS1  R/.LV   REL1GJOX. 

acts.  Not  only  does  humanity  turn  to  Ea:  the  gods,  too,  appeal 
to  him  in  their  distress.  The  eclipse  of  the  moon  was  regarded 
by  the  popular  faith  as  a  sort  of  bewitchment  of  the  great  orb 
through  the  seven  evil  spirits.  All  the  heavenly  bodies  are 
affected  by  such  an  event.  Anu  is  powerless.  It  is  only 
through  Ea  that  Sin  is  released,  just  as  though  he  were  a  human 
individual.  But  Ea  is  rarely  approached  directly.  At  his  side 
stands  his  son  Marduk,  who  acts  as  a  mediator.  Marduk 
listens  to  the  petition  addressed  to  him  by  the  exorcising  priest 
on  behalf  of  the  victim,  and  carries  the  word  to  Father  Ea.  The 
latter,  after  first  declaring  Marduk  to  be  his  equal  in  knowl- 
edge, proceeds  to  dictate  the  cure.  Marduk,  accordingly,  is 
given  the  same  titles  as  his  father,  Ea.  He,  too,  is  the  lord  of 
life,  the  master  of  the  exorcising  art,  the  chief  magician  among 
the  gods. 

The  importance  thus  given  to  Marduk  is  an  indication  of  a 
later  period,  and  must  be  taken  in  connection  with  the  suprem- 
acy accorded  to  the  god  after  the  union  of  the  Babylonian 
states.  Originally,  Ea  is  the  god  to  whom  the  direct  appeal 
was  made.  Marduk  is  an  afterthought  that  points  to  the 
remodeling  of  the  ancient  texts  after  the  period  of  Hammu- 
rabi. Damkina,  the  consort  of  Ea,  is  occasionally  invoked, 
but  it  is  significant  that  Sarpanitum,  the  consort  of  Marduk,  is 
rarely  mentioned. 

The  burning  of  images  and  witches,  or  of  other  objects, 
being  so  frequently  resorted  to  as  a  means  of  destroying  bane- 
ful influences,  the  god  of  fire  occupies  a  rank  hardly  secondary 
to  Ea.  Here,  too,  the  mystical  element  involved  in  the  use  of 
tire  adds  to  the  effectiveness  of  the  method.  Water  and  lire 
arc  the  two  great  sources  of  symbolical  purification  that  we 
meet  with  in  both  primitive  and  advanced  rituals  of  the  past.1 

1  Robertson  Smith.  Religion  of  the  Semites,  p.  352.  Grimm,  Deutsche  Mythologie, 
i.  508—596.  Tylor,  Primitive  Culture,  ii.  ^S;  scq.  See  also  the  article  "  Hestia"  in 
K  ■  >-.i  her's  .  lusfiihrlickts  Lexikon  </<■>■  Griechischen  mul  Rbmischen  Mythol 


THE   MAGICAL    TEXTS.  277 

The  fire-god  appears  in  the  texts  under  the  double  form  of 
Gibil  and  Nusku.  The  former  occurs  with  greater  frequency 
than  the  latter,  but  the  two  are  used  so  interchangeably  as  to 
be  in  every  respect  identical.  The  amalgamation  of  the  two 
may  indeed  be  due  to  the  growth  of  the  incantation  rituals  of 
Babylon.  In  some  districts  Gibil  was  worshipped  as  the  special 
god  of  fire,  in  others  Nusku,  much  as  we  found  the  sun-god 
worshipped  under  the  names  of  Shamas  and  Utu,  and  similarly 
in  the  case  of  other  deities.  On  the  supposition  that  the 
incantation  rituals  are  the  result  of  a  complicated  literary 
process,  involving  the  collection  of  all  known  formulas,  and  the 
bringing  of  them  into  some  kind  of  connection  with  one  another, 
this  existence  of  a  twofold  fire-god  finds  a  ready  explanation. 
At  Babylon  we  know  Nusku  was  worshipped  as  the  fire-god. 
Gibil  belongs  therefore  to  another  section,  perhaps  to  one 
farther  south.  He  is  in  all  probability  the  older  god  of  the 
two,  and  the  preponderating  occurrence  of  his  name  in  the 
texts  may  be  taken  as  a  proof  of  the  ancient  origin  of  those 
parts  in  which  it  occurs.  There  being  no  special  motive  why 
he  should  be  supplanted  by  Nusku,  his  preeminence  was  not 
interfered  with  through  the  remodeling  to  which  the  texts  were 
subjected.  While  bearing  in  mind  that  Gibil  and  Nusku  are 
two  distinct  deities,  we  may,  for  the  sake  of  convenience,  treat 
them  together  under  the  double  designation  of  Gibil-Nusku. 

Gibil  and  Nusku  are  called  '  sons  of  Anu  ';  Gibil,  indeed,  is 
spoken  of  as  the  first-born  of  heaven,  and  the  image  of  his 
father.  The  conception  is  probably  mythological,  resting  upon 
the  belief  in  the  heavenly  origin  of  fire  held  by  all  nations. 
Gibil-Nusku  is  exalted  as  the  '  lofty  one '  among  the  gods, 
whose  command  is  supreme.  He  is  at  once  the  great  messen- 
ger of  the  gods  and  their  chief  counsellor.  Clothed  in  splendor, 
his  light  is  unquenchable.  A  large  variety  of  other  attributes 
are  assigned  to  him,  all  emphasizing  his  strength,  his  majesty, 
his  brilliancy,  and  the  terror  that  he  is  able  to  inspire.     The 


278  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

importance  of  fire  to  mankind  made  Gibil-Nusku  the  founder 
of  cities,  and  in  general  the  god  of  civilization.  As  the  fire- 
god,  Gibil-Nusku  is  more  especially  invoked  at  the  symbolical 
burn  ine:  of  the  images  of  the  witches.  With  a  raised  torch  in 
one  hand,  the  bewitched  person  repeats  the  incantation  recited 
by  the  exorciser.  Frequently  the  instruction  is  added  that 
the  incantation  is  to  be  recited  in  a  whisper,  corresponding  to 
the  soft  tones  in  which  the  demons,  witches,  and  ghosts  are 
supposed  to  convey  their  messages.  The  incantations  in 
which  the  fire-god  is  exalted  in  grandiloquent  terms  belong  to 
the  finest  productions  of  this  branch  of  the  religious  literature. 
The  addresses  to  Gibil-Nusku  are  veritable  hymns  that  are 
worthy  of  better  associations.     One  of  these  addresses  begins: 

Nusku,  great  god,  counsellor  of  the  great  gods,1 

Guarding  the  sacrificial  gifts'-  of  all  the  heavenly  spirits, 

Founder  of  cities,  renewer  of  the  sanctuaries, 

Glorious  day,  whose  command  is  supreme, 

Messenger  of  Anu,  carrying  out  the  decrees  of  Bel, 

Obedient  to  Bel,  counsellor,  mountain3  of  the  earthly  spirits, 

Mighty  in  battle,  whose  attack  is  powerful, 

Without  thee  no  table  is  spread  in  the  temple. 

Without  thee,  Shamash,  the  judge  executes  no  judgment. 

I,  thy  servant  so  and  so,  the  son  of  so  ana  so,4 

Whose  god  is  so  and  so,  and  whose  goddess  so  and  so,6 

I  turn  to  thee,  I  seek  thee,  I  raise  my  hands  to  thee, 

1  prostrate  myself  before  thee. 
Burn  the  sorcerer  and  sorceress, 

9 

May  the  life  of  my  sorcerer  and  sorceress  be  destroyed. 

Let  me  live  that  1  may  exalt  thee  and  proudly  pay  homage  to  thee. 

This  incantation,  we  are  told,  is  to  be  recited   in  a  whisper, 
in  the  presence  of  an  image  of  wax.     The  image  is  burnt  as 

i  '  Maklu'  series,  ii.  11.  i— 1 7. 

2  A  reference  to  the  sacred  action  of  the  fire  in  the  burnt  offerings. 

s  A  favorite  title  of  several  gods.  Bel,  Sin,  etc.,  that  emphasizes  their  strength. 

1  Here  the  seeker  for  help  inserts  his  name. 

6  Here  the  names  of  special  deities  are  to  be  inserted. 


THE   MAGICAL    TEXTS.  279 

the  words  are  spoken,  and  as  it  is  consumed  the  power  of  the 
witch  is  supposed  to  wane.  The  reference  to  the  indispensable 
presence  of  the  fire-god  in  the  temple  is  rather  interesting. 
Sacrifice  always  entailed  the  use  of  fire.  To  whatever  deity 
the  offering  was  made,  Gibil-Nusku  could  not  in  any  case  be 
overlooked.  The  fire  constituted  the  medium,  as  it  were,  be- 
tween the  worshipper  and  the  deity  addressed.  The  fire-god 
is  in  truth  the  messenger  who  carries  the  sacrifice  into  the 
presence  of  the  god  worshipped.  Even  Shamash,  though 
himself  personifying  fire,  is  forced  to  acknowledge  the  power 
of  Gibil-Nusku,  who,  we  are  told  elsewhere,  is  invoked,  even 
when  sacrifices  are  made  to  the  sun-god. 

Besides  being  the  son  of  Anu,  Gibil-Nusku  is  brought  into 
association  with  the  two  other  members  of  the  triad,  Bel  and 
Ea.  He  is  the  messenger  of  Bel  and  the  son  of  Ea.  The  for- 
mer conception  is  again  mythical.  Fire  is  also  the  instrument 
of  the  gods,  and  Nusku  is  particularly  called  the  messenger  of 
Bel  because  Bel  is  one  of  the  highest  gods.  In  reality  he  is 
the  messenger  of  all  the  gods,  and  is  frequently  so  designated. 
His  connection  with  Ea,  on  the  other  hand,  seems  to  be  the 
result  of  the  systematizing  efforts  of  the  schoolmen.  Ea  occu- 
pying the  chief  rank  in  the  incantations,  the  subsidiary  role  of 
Gibil-Nusku  is  indicated  by  making  him,  just  as  Marduk,  the 
son  of  Ea.  In  this  way,  too,  the  two  great  means  of  purifica- 
tion—  water  and  fire  —  are  combined  under  a  single  aspect. 
The  combination  was  all  the  more  appropriate  since  the  fire- 
god,  as  the  promoter  of  culture,  shared  with  Ea  the  protection 
of  humanity.  Accordingly,  all  the  titles  of  Ea  are  bestowed  in 
one  place  or  the  other  upon  Gibil-Nusku.  But,  after  all,  Gibil- 
Nusku  is  merely  a  phase  of  the  solar  deity,1  and  hence  by  the 
side  of  this  fire-god,  Shamash  and  the  other  solar  deities, 
though  in  a  measure  subsidiary  to  Gibil-Nusku,  are  frequently 
invoked.      Shamash,   as  the  great  judge,  was  a  personage  es- 

1  See  above,  Nusku,  p.  220. 


2S0  BA  />'  YL  ONI  A  N-A  SS )  'R I A  N  RELIGION. 

pecially  appropriate  for  occasions  which  involved  a  decision 
in  favor  of  the  bewitched  and  against  the  witches  or  demons. 
Gibil-Nusku,  like  Shamash,  is  exalted  as  the  great  judge  who 
comes  to  the  aid  of  the  oppressed.  Similarly,  the  fire-god 
receives  the  attributes  belonging  to  Ninib,  Nergal,  and  the 
various  phases  of  the  latter,  such  as  Lugal-edinna,  Lugal-gira, 
and  Alamu.  These  gods,  then,  and  their  consorts,  because  of 
their  relationship  to  the  fire-god,  are  introduced  into  the  incan- 
tations, and  what  is  more  to  the  point,  the  various  phases  of 
Nergal  and  Ninib  are  introduced  without  any  trace  of  the  dis- 
tinctions that  originally  differentiated  them  from  one  another.1 
Besides  the  great  solar  deities,  minor  ones,  as  Nin-gish-zida  " 
and  I-shum,  are  frequently  added  in  long  lists  of  protecting 
spirits  to  whom  the  appeal  for  help  is  directed.  The  attempt 
is  also  made  to  illustrate  their  relationship  to  the  great  fire- 
god.  So  I-shum  becomes  the  messenger  of  Nusku,  while  Nin- 
gish-zida  (though  in  the  clays  of  Gudea  a  male  deity3)  appears 
to  be  regarded,  as  Tallqvist  has  suggested,  as  the  consort  of 
Nusku. 

Ni<rht  bein<r  a  favorite  time  for  the  recital  of  the  incanta- 
tions,  it  was  natural  that  the  orb  of  night,  the  god  Sin,  should 
be-  added  to  the  pantheon  of  the  exorciser.  Though  playing  a 
minor  role,  the  moon-god  is  never  omitted  when  a  long  series 
of  protecting  spirits  is  invoked.  But  there  are  occasions  when 
Sin  becomes  the  chief  deity  invoked.  Reference  has  already 
been  made  to  the  general  terror  that  moon  eclipses  inspired. 
The  disappearance  of  the  moon  was  looked  upon  as  a  sign  of 
the  god's  displeasure  or  as  a  defeat  of  the  moon  in  a  conflict 
with  other  planets.  Disaster  of  some  kind  —  war,  pestilence, 
internal  disturbances — was  sure  to  follow  upon  an  eclipse, 
unless  the  anger  of  the  god  could  be  appeased  or  his  weakness 

1  See  p.  67. 

-  A  form  (if  Nusku,  according  to  Tallqvist,  Assyr.  Beschwbr.  p.  [46.     It  would 
lx'  more  ai  1  urate  to  say  a  form  of  Ninib.     See  p.  <)2. 
:i  Sec  p.  mi  . 


THE  MAGICAL    TEXTS.  281 

overcome.  In  the  case  of  such  general  troubles  affecting  the 
whole  country,  it  is  the  kings  themselves  who  seek  out  the 
priests.  Rituals  were  prepared  to  meet  the  various  contingen- 
cies. The  king  begins  the  ceremony  by  a  prayer  addressed  to 
Sin.      One  of  these  prayers  begins:1 

O  Sin,  O  Nannar!  mighty  one     .     .     . 

O  Sin,  thou  who  alone  givest  light, 

Extending  light  to  mankind, 

Showing  favor  to  the  black-headed  ones,2 

Thy  light  shines  in  heaven     .     .     . 

Thy  torch  is  brilliant  as  fire  ; 

Thy  light  fills  the  broad  earth. 

Thy  light  is  glorious  as  the  Sun  .  .  . 
Before  thee  the  great  gods  lie  prostrate ; 
The  fate  of  the  world  rests  with  thee. 

An  eclipse  has  taken  place,  portending  evil  to  the  country,  and 
libations  have  been  poured  out  on  days  carefully  selected  as 
favorable  ones.     The  king  continues  : 

I  have  poured  out  to  thee,  with  wailing,3  a  libation  at  night ; 
I  have  offered  thee  a  drink-offering  with  shouts  ; 
,  Prostrate  and  standing  erect  i  I  implore  thee. 

With  the  prayer  to  Sin,  appeals  to  other  gods  and  also  god- 
desses are  frequently  combined,  —  to  Marduk,  Ishtar,  Tash- 
mitum,  Nabu,  Ramman,  and  the  like.  The  incantations  them- 
selves, consisting  of  fervent  appeals  to  remove  the  evil,  actual 
or  portending,  are  preceded  by  certain  ceremonies,  —  the  burn- 
ing of  incense,  the  pouring  out  of  some  drink,  or  by  symbolical 
acts,  as  the  binding  of  cords;  and  the  god  is  appealed  to  once 
more  to  answer  the  prayer. 

1  King,  Babylonian  Magic,  p.  3. 

2  Humanity. 

3  The  reference  is  to  the  formal  lamentations  on  the  occasion  of  the  death  of  any 
one.     'flie  moon-god,  having  disappeared,  is  bewailed  as  though  dead. 

4  /.£.,  under  all  conditions  and  at  all  times. 


282  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Again,  just  as  Gibil-Nusku  entails  the  invocation  of  a  large 
variety  of  solar  deities,  so  Ea,  as  the  water-god,  leads  to  the 
introduction  of  various  water-gods  and  spirits.  Perhaps  the 
most  prominent  of  these  is  the  god  Nam,  whose  name,  signify- 
ing '  river,'1  is  clearly  the  personification  of  the  watery  element, 
though  of  the  minor  bodies  of  water.  Next  in  order  comes  the 
goddess  Nin-akha-kuddu.2  She  is  invoked  as  'goddess  of  puri- 
fication.' From  her  association  in  several  passages  with  the 
great  deep,  and  with  the  city  of  Eridu  —  metaphorically  used 
for  the  great  deep  —  one  maybe  permitted  to  conclude  that 
she,  too,  was  conceived  of  as  a  water-god  or  a  water-spirit.  She 
is  '  the  lady  of  spells,'  who  is  asked  to  take  possession  of  the 
body  of  the  sufferer,  and  thus  free  him  from  the  control  of 
demons  or  witches.  By  the  side  of  this  goddess,  Gula,  'the 
great  physician,'  is  often  appealed  to.  Again,  the  demons 
being  in  some  cases  the  ghosts  of  the  departed,  or  such  as 
hover  around  graves,  Nin-kigal,  or  Allatu,  the  mistress  of  the 
lower  world,  is  an  important  ally,  whose  aid  is  desired  in  the 
struggle  against  the  evil  spirits.  Lastly,  it  is  interesting  to 
note  that  Izdubar,  or  Gilgamesh,  the  famous  hero  of  the  great 
Babylonian  epic,  occurs  also  in  incantations3 — a  welcome  indi- 
cation of  the  antiquity  of  the  myth,  and  the  proof,  at  the  same 
time,  that  the  epic  is  built  on  a  foundation  of  myth.  From 
the  mythological  side,  Gilgamesh  appears  to  be  a  solar  deity. 
The  connection  of  a  solar  god  with  fire  would  account  for 
his  appearance  in  the  magical  texts.  However  obscure  some 
of  the  points  connected  with  the  gods  of  the  incantation  texts 
may  be,  so  much  is  certain,  that  the  two  factors  of  water  and 
fire,  and  the  part  played  by  these  elements  in  the  ceremonies, 
control  and  explain   the  choice  of  most  of  the  gods  and  god- 

1  The  reading  Nam  is  not  altogether  certain,  hut  prohahle.  See  Tallqvist,  Assyr. 
Beschw'dr.  pp.  [31,  132,  whose  suggestion,  however,  that  Nam  may  lxi  a  female  deity, 
is  not  acceptable.     Elitti  is  probably  a  scribal  error. 

2  See  above  p.  103. 
8 Tallqvist,  i.  1.  58. 


THE   MAGICAL    TEXTS.  2S3 

desses  introduced,  though  —  be  it  expressly  noted  —  not  of  all 
occurring  in  the  magical  texts. 

The  Ritual  and  Formulas. 

Coming  to  the  incantations  themselves,  they  can  best  be 
characterized  as  appeals  interspersed  with  words  of  a  more  or 
less  mystic  character.  The  force  and  efficacy  of  the  incanta- 
tion lie  not  so  much  in  the  meaning  of  the  words  uttered,  as 
in  the  simple  fact  that  they  are  to  be  uttered.  These  incanta- 
tions were  combined  into  a  ritual,  and  indications  were  given 
of  the  occasions  on  which  the  incantations  were  to  be  used. 
An  analysis  of  one  of  these  rituals  will  serve  to  illustrate  this 
branch  of  the  religious  literature  of  the  Babylonians.  I  choose 
for  this  purpose  the  series  known  as  Maklu,  i.e.,  Burning,1  the 
interpretation  of  which  has  been  so  considerably  advanced  by 
Dr.  Tallqvist's  admirable  work.  The  first  tablet  of  the  series 
opens  with  an  invocation  to  the  gods  of  night.  After  com- 
plaining of  his  sad  condition,  the  bewitched  individual  con- 
tinues as  follows : 

Arise  ye  great  gods,  hear  my  complaint; 

Grant  me  justice,  take  cognizance  of  my  condition. 

I  have  made  an  image  of  my  sorcerer  and  sorceress; 

I  have  humbled  myself  before  you  and  bring  to  you  my  cause 

Because  of  the  evil  they  {i.e.,  the  witches)  have  done, 

Of  the  impure  things  which  they  have  handled,2 

May  she3  die  !     Let  me  live  ! 

May  her  charm,  her  witchcraft,  her  sorcery  (?)  be  broken. 

May  the  plucked  sprig  (?)  of  the  biiui  tree  purify  me. 

May  it  release  me;  may  the  evil  odor4  of  my  mouth  be  scattered  to 

the  winds. 
May  the  mashtakal  herb5  which  fills  the  earth  cleanse  me. 
Before  you  let  me  shine  like  the  kankal  herb 

1  See  above,  p.  254.  3  The  witch. 

2  To  bewitch  me.  4  From  which  he  surfers  through  the  witches. 

5  The  identification  of  the  many  herbs  mentioned  in  the  texts  is  as  yet  impos- 
sible.    The  subject  awaits  investigation  at  the  hands  of  one  versed  in  botanical  lore. 


284  H A nYLONI AN- ASSYRIAN  RELIGION 

Let  me  be  as  brilliant  and  pure  as  the  lardu  herb. 

The  charm  of  the  sorceress  is  evil ; 

May  her  words  return  to  her  mouth,1  her  tongue  be  cut  off. 

Because  of  her  witchcraft,  may  the  gods  of  night  smite  her, 

The  three  watches  of  the  night  2  break  her  evil  charm. 

May  her  mouth  be  wax3  (?),  her  tongue  honey. 

May  the  word  causing  my  misfortune  that  she  has  spoken  dissolve 

like  wax  (?). 
May  the  charm  that  she  has  wound  up  melt  like  honey, 
So  that  her  magic  knot  be  cut  in  twain,  her  work  destroyed, 
All  her  words  scattered  across  the  plains 
By  the  order  that  the  gods  have  given. 

The  section  closes  with  the  ordinary  request  of  the  exorciser 
to  the  victim:  "  Recite  this  incantation."  It  will  be  seen  how 
closely  the  principle  of  sympathetic  magic  is  followed.  The 
individual  having  been  bewitched  by  means  of  certain  herbs 
concocted  probably  into  potions,  other  herbs  are  prepared  by 
the  exorciser  as  an  antidote.  The  emphasis  laid  upon  purifi- 
cation, too,  is  noteworthy.  There  are  numerous  synonyms 
employed  for  which  it  is  difficult  to  find  the  adequate  equiva- 
lent in  English.  The  terms  reach  out  beyond  the  literal  to  the 
symbolical  purification.  The  victim  wishes  to  become  pure, 
cleansed  of  all  impurities,  so  that  he  may  be  resplendent  as 
the  gods  are  pure,  brilliant,  and  glorious,  pure  as  the  water, 
brilliant  and  glorious  as  the  fire. 

The  length  of  the  formulas  varies.  Often  they  consist  only 
of  a  few  lines.  So  the  one  immediately  following  appeals  to 
Gilgamesh  in  these  words: 

Earth,  Earth,  Earth, 

(lilgamesh  is  the  master  of  your  witchcraft. 
What  you  have  done,  I  know; 
What  I  do,  you  know  not. 

All  the  mischief  wrought  by  my  sorceresses  is  destroyed,  dissolved  —  is 
gone. 

1  /.c,  I)e  ineffective. 

-  /.(..  the  gods  presiding  over  the  watches. 

:l  llri  words  dissolve  like  wax  and  honey. 


THE   MAGICAL    TEXTS.  2S5 

At  times  the  conditions  under  which  the  witches  are  pictured 
as  acting  are  very  elaborate.  They  are  represented  as  dwell- 
ing in  places  with  which  mythological  conceptions  are  con- 
nected ;  they  are  ferried  across  the  river  separating  their  city 
from  human  habitations  ;  they  are  protected  against  attacks  by 
the  walls  which  surround  their  habitations.  To  effect  a  release, 
the  exorcisers,  it  would  appear,  made  representations  by  means 
of  drawings  on  clay  of  these  habitations  of  the  witches.  They 
thereupon  symbolically  cut  off  the  approaches  and  laid  siege  to 
the  towns.  This,  at  least,  appears  to  be  the  meaning  of  an 
incantation  beginning : 

My  city  is  Sappan,1  my  city  is  Sappan  ; 

The  gates  of  my  city  Sappan  are  two, 

One  towards  sunrise,  the  other  towards  sunset.2 

I  carry  a  box,  a  pot  with  mashtakal  herbs ; 

To  the  gods  of  heaven  I  offer  water; 

As  I  for  you  secure  your  purification, 

So  do  you  purify  me  ! 

The  victim  imitates  the  conduct  of  the  witch,  goes  about  as 
she  does,  with  a  pot  in  which  the  potions  are  made,  performs 
the  symbolical  act  which  should  purify  him  of  the  evil  that  is 
in  him,  and  hopes,  in  this  way,  to  obtain  his  own  release.  The 
description  continues  : 

I  have  kept  back  the  ferry,  have  shut  off  the  wall,3 

Have  thus  checked  the  enchantment  from  all  quarters. 

Anu  and  Anatum  have  commissioned  me. 

Whom  shall  I  send  to  Belit  of  the  field  ?* 

Into  the  mouth  of  the  sorcerer  and  sorceress  cast  the  lock.5 

Recite  the  incantation  of  the  chief  of  gods,  Marduk.6 

'  Let  them 7  call  to  thee  but  answer  them  not, 

1  Supposed  to  be  situated  at  the  northern  point  of  the  heavens. 

2  The  vault  of  heaven  was  pictured  as  having  two  gates. 

3  So  that  the  witch  cannot  leave  her  habitation. 
*  With  the  order  '  to  cast  the  lock,'  etc. 

5  To  prevent  her  from  uttering  her  charms. 

6  The  following  four  lines  constitute  the  incantation. 

7  I.e.,  the  witches. 


2S6  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Let  them  address  thee,  but  hearken  not  to  them. 

Let  me  call  to  thee,  and  do  thou  answer  me, 

Let  me  address  thee,  and  do  thou  hearken  unto  me.' 

By  the  command  of  Anu,  Anatum,  and  Belit,  recite  the  incantation. 

The  hymns  to  the  fire-god,  Nusku,  of  which  the  '  Maklu ' 
series  naturally  furnishes  many  specimens,1  are  all  pretty  much 
alike.  I  choose  one  which  illustrates  in  greater  detail  the  sym- 
bolical burning  of  the  image  of  the  witch:2 

Nusku,  great  offspring  of  Anu, 

The  likeness  of  his  father,  the  first-born  of  Bel, 

The  product  of  the  deep,  sprung  from  Ea,3 

I  raise  the  torch  to  illumine  thee,  yea,  thee. 

The  sorcerer  who  has  bewitched  me, 

Through  the  witchcraft  by  means  of  which  he  has  bewitched  me, 

do  thou  bewitch  him. 
The  sorceress  who  has  bewitched  me, 
Through  the  witchcraft  by  means  of  which  she  has  bewitched  me, 

bewitch  thou  her. 
The  charmer  who  has  charmed  me, 
Through  the  charm  with  which  he  has  charmed  me,  charm  thou 

him. 
The  witch  who  has  charmed  me, 
Through  the  charm  with  which  she  has  charmed  me,  charm  thou 

her. 
Those  who  have  made  images  of  me,  reproducing  my  features, 
Who  have  taken  away  my  breath,  torn  my  hairs, 
Who  have  rent  my  clothes,  have  hindered  my  feet  from  treading 

the  dust, 
May  the  fire-god,  the  strong  one,  break  their  charm. 

Just  as  the  witches  were  burnt  in  effigy,  so  also  the  demons 
were  supposed  to  be  similarly  dispelled.  Immediately  following 
the  incantation  comes  one  directed  against  the  demons: 

1  See  above,  p.  27S,  where  one  has  teen  given. 
'2  Maklu,  i.  122-143. 

8The  fiery  element  belongs  to  all  three  divisions  of  the  universe,  —  to  heaven, 
earth,  and  water. 


THE   MAGICAL    TEXTS.  2S7 

I  raise  the  torch,  their  images  I  burn, 

Of  the  utukku,  the  shedu,  the  rabisu,  the  ekimmu, 

The  labartu,  the  labasi,  the  akhkhazu, 

Of  lilti  and  lilitu  and  ardat  lili, 

And  every  evil  that  seizes  hold  of  men. 
Tremble,  melt  away,  and  disappear  ! 
May  your  smoke  rise  to  heaven, 
May  Shamash  destroy  your  limbs, 
May  the  son  of  Ea  [i.e.,  may  the  fire-god], 
The  great  magician,  restrain  your  strength  (?). 

The  witch  who  has  caused  the  evil  may  be  unknown.  For 
such  a  case  one  of  the  incantations  runs : l 

Who  art  thou,  sorceress,  who  bears  her  evil  word  within  her  heart, 

Through  whose  tongue  my  misfortune  is  produced, 

Through  whose  lips  I  have  been  poisoned, 

In  whose  footsteps  death  follows  ? 

Sorceress,  I  seize  thy  mouth,  seize  thy  tongue, 

I  seize  thy  searching  eyes, 

I  seize  thy  ever-moving  feet, 

I  seize  thy  knees  ever  active, 

I  seize  thy  hands  ever  stretched  out, 

I  tie  thy  hands  behind  thee. 

May  Sin   .   .   .  destroy  thy  body, 

May  he  cast  thee  into  an  abyss  of  fire  and  water. 

Sorceress,  as  the  circle  of  this  seal-ring,2 

May  thy  face  grow  pale  and  wan. 

Of  the  same  character  as  this,  are  a  variety  of  other  incanta- 
tions, all  applicable  to  cases  in  which  the  sorceress  is  unknown. 
As  the  last  specimen  of  the  '  Maklu  '  series,  I  choose  an  incan- 
tation addressed  to  the  demons,  which  is  interesting  because  of 
the  direct  character  of  the  commands  it  contains  : 

Away,  away,  far  away,  far  away, 
For  shame,  for  shame,  fly  away,  fly  away, 
Round  about  face,  go  away,  far  away, 
Out  of  my  body,  away, 

1  Maklu,  iii.  11.  89-103. 

2  Many  of  the  seals  used  by  the  Babylonians  were  of  white  stone  or  bone. 


288  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

(  kit  of  my  body,  far  away, 

Out  of  my  body,  away  for  shame, 

Out  of  my  body,  fly  away, 

Out  of  my  body,  round  about  face, 

Out  of  my  body,  go  away, 

Into  my  body,  come  not  back, 

Towards  my  body,  do  not  approach, 

Towards  my  body,  draw  not  nigh, 

My  body  torture  not. 

By  Shamash  the  mighty,  be  ye  foresworn. 

By  Ea,  the  lord  of  everything,  be  ye  foresworn. 

By  Marduk,  the  chief  magician  of  the  gods,  be  ye  foresworn. 

By  the  fire-god,  be  ye  foresworn. 

From  my  body  be  ye  restrained  ! 

Repetition  and  variation  in  the  use  of  certain  phrases  make 
up,  as  will  be  seen  from  the  specimens  given,  a  large  part  of 
the  incantation.  A  curious  illustration  of  the  importance 
attributed  to  such  repetition  is  furnished  by  the  eighth  and 
last  tablet  of  the  '  Maklu  '  series.  It  consists  of  seven  divisions, 
each  beginning  with  a  repetition  of  the  headlines  of  the  vari- 
ous sections  of  the  preceding  seven  tablets;  and  only  after  the 
headlines  of  each  of  the  tablets  have  been  exhausted,  does  the 
real  incantation  begin.  This  eighth  tablet  contains  therefore 
a  kind  of  summary  of  all  the  others,  the  purpose  of  which  is  to 
gather  together  all  the  power  and  influence  of  the  seven  others. 

The  '  Maklu  '  ritual  deals  so  largely  with  the  fire-god  that  a 
specimen  from  another  series,  to  illustrate  the  position  of  Ea 
and  Marduk  in  the  incantations,  seems  called  for.  The  'Shurpu' 
series  introduces  Ea  and  Marduk  more  particularly.  The  fifth 
tablet  of  this  series  begins  :  ' 

The  evil  curse  rests  like  a  gallu  upon  the  man, 
The  pain-giving  voice'2  has  settled  upon  him, 
Tin'  voice  that  is  not  good  has  settled  upon  him, 
The  evil  curse,  the  charm  that  produces  insanity, 
The  evil  curse  has  killed  that  man  as  a  sheep, 

t  Zimmern's  edition,  pp.  25-29.  '2  I.e.,  the  evil  word. 


THE   MAGICAL    TEXTS.  2S9 

His  god  has  departed  from  his  body,1 

His  goddess  has  .  .  .  taken  her  place  outside,2 

The  pain-giving  voice  covers  him  as  a  garment  and  confuses  him. 

Marduk  sees  him, 

And  proceeds  to  the  house  of  his  father  Ea  and  speaks  : 

"  My  father,  the  evil  curse  as  a  demon  has  settled  on  the  man." 

He  says  it  for  a  second  time. 

"  What  that  man  should  do,  I  do  not  know  ;  by  what  can  he  be  cured  ?  " 

Ea  answers  his  son  Marduk  : 

"  My  son,  can  I  add  aught  that  thou'  dost  not  know  ? 

Marduk,  what  can  I  tell  thee  that  thou  dost  not  know  ? 

What  I  know,  also  thou  knowest. 

My  son  Marduk,  take  him  to  the  overseer  of  the  house  of  perfect  puri- 
fication, 

Dissolve  his  spell,  release  him  from  the  charm,  and  from  the  trouble- 
some bodily  disease. 

Whether  it  be  the  curse  of  his  father, 

Or  the  curse  of  his  mother, 

Or  the  curse  of  his  brother, 

Or  the  curse  of  an  unknown,3 

May  the  bewitchment  through  the  charm  of  Ea  be  peeled  off  like  an 
onion. 

May  it  be  cut  off  like  a  date. 

May  it  be  removed  like  a  husk. 

O  power  of  the  spirit  of  heaven,  be  thou  invoked  ! 

O  spirit  of  earth,  be  thou  invoked  !  " 

The  purification  by  water,  which  is  here  only  incidentally 
referred  to,  is  more  fully  touched  upon  in  other  incantations, 
where  Ea  tells  Marduk  that  the  victim  must  take 

Glittering  water,  pure  water, 

Holy  water,  resplendent  water, 

The  water  twice  seven  times  may  he  bring, 

May  he  make  pure,  may  he  make  resplendent. 

May  the  evil  rabisu  depart, 

May  he  betake  himself  outside, 

1  His  protecting  deity  has  deserted  him. 

2  Of  his  body. 

3 1.e.,  whoever  may  have  invoked  the  evil  demon  to  settle  upon  him. 


290  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

May  the  protecting  shedu,  the  protecting  lamassu, 

Settle  upon  his  body. 

Spirit  of  heaven,  be  thou  invoked  ! 

Spirit  of  earth,  be  thou  invoked  !  l 

Still  other  methods  of  magical  cure  besides  the  use  of  water 
and  of  potions  were  in  vogue.  In  a  tablet  of  the  same  ritual  to 
which  the  last  extract  belongs,  and  which  is  especially  concerned 
with  certain  classes  of  diseases  produced  by  the  demons,  the 
sick  man  is  told  to  take 

White  wool,  which  has  been  spun  into  thread, 
To  attach  it  to  his  couch  -  in  front  and  at  the  top, 
Black  wool  which  has  been  spun  into  thread 
To  bind  at  his  left  side. 

Then  follows  the  incantation  which  he  is  to  recite: 

The  evil  utukku,  alii,  ekimmu, 

The  evil  gallu,  the  evil  god,  rabisu, 

Labarttt,  labasu,  akhkhazu, 

Lilu  and  lilit  and  ardat  lili, 

Sorcery,  charm,  bewitchment, 

The  sickness,  the  cruel  artifice, 

Their  head  against  his  head, 

Their  hand  against  his  hand, 

Their  foot  against  his  foot, 

Way  they  not  place, 

May  they  never  draw  nigh. 

Spirit  of  heaven,  be  thou  foresworn  ! 

Spirit  of  earth,  be  thou  foresworn  ! 

It  is  interesting  to  note  the  introduction  of  ethical  ideas  into 
these  texts,  despite  the  primitive  character  of  the  beliefs  upon 
which  the  incantations  repose.  The  possibility  was  considered 
that  the  attack  of  the  demons  was  a  punishment  sent  in  some 
way  for  committed  sins.  The  incantation  series  '  Shurpu '  fur- 
nishes us  with  a  long  list  of  wrongs  for  which  a  person   may 

1  The  translation  of  these  lines  follows  in  all  but  some  minor  passages  the  correct 
one  given  by  Sayce,  Hibbert  Lectures,  p.  446.  2  of  the  sick  man. 


THE   MAGICAL    TEXTS.  291 

be  held  enthralled  in  the  power  of  the  demons  or  sorcerers. 
The  exorciser  in  petitioning  that  the  ban  may  be  relieved,  enu- 
merates at  length  the  various  causes  for  which  the  evil  may 
have  been  sent : 1 

Has  he  sinned  against  a  god, 

Is  his  guilt  against  a  goddess, 

Is  it  a  wrongful  deed  against  his  master, 

Hatred  towards  his  elder  brother, 

Has  he  despised  father  or  mother, 

Insulted  his  elder  sister, 

Has  he  given  too  little, '- 

Has  he  withheld  too  much, 

For  "  no  "  said  "  yes," 

For  "yes  "said  "no"?3 

Has  he  used  false  weights  ? 


Has  he  taken  an  incorrect  amount, 

Not  taken  the  correct  sum, 

Has  he  fixed  a  false  boundary, 

Not  fixed  a  just  boundary, 

Has  he  removed  a  boundary,  a  limit,  or  a  territory, 

Has  he  possessed  himself  of  his  neighbor's  house, 

Has  he  approached  his  neighbor's  wife, 

Has  he  shed  the  blood  of  his  neighbor, 

Robbed  his  neighbor's  dress  ? 

Was  he  frank  in  speaking, 
But  false  in  heart, 
Was  it  "  yes  "  with  his  mouth, 
But  "  no  "  in  his  heart  ?* 

In  this  way  the  exorciser  proceeds  to  enumerate  an  exceed- 
ingly long  list  of  sins  —  no  less  than  one  hundred  —  most  of 
which  are  ethical  misdemeanors,  while  others  are  merely  cere- 
monial transgressions.     In  the  third  tablet  of  this  series 5  there 

1  Zimmern,  Die  Beschworungstafeln  Shurpu,  pp.  5,  6. 

2  In  mercantile  transactions.  3  jx^  iiecj. 

4  I.e.,  did  he  say  one  tiling,  but  mean  the  contrary? 

5  Zimmern,  ib.  pp.  13-20. 


292  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

is  even  a  longer  list  of  causes  for  the  ban  which  Marduk,  the 
"  chief  exorciser  "  among  the  gods,  is  called  upon  to  loosen. 
Here  again  we  find  an  equal  proportion  of  moral  transgressions 
placed  on  a  par  with  errors  in  performing  religious  rites  or 
unwillful  offences  in  neglecting  conventional  methods  of  doing 
things. 

The  ethical  features  of  the  texts  can,  without  much  question, 
be  put  down  as  the  work  of  the  later  editors.  They  belong  to 
a  period  when  already  an  advanced  conception  not  only  of 
right  and  wrong,  but  also  of  sin  had  arisen  among  the  religious 
leaders  of  the  people,  and  perhaps  had  made  its  way  already 
among  the  masses,  without,  however,  disturbing  the  confidence 
in  the  traditional  superstitions.  The  strange  combination  of 
primitive  and  advanced  religious  beliefs  is  characteristic,  as  we 
shall  have  occasion  to  see,  of  various  divisions  of  the  Babylonian 
religious  literature.  The  lapse  from  the  ethical  strain  to  the 
incantation  refrain  is  as  sudden  as  it  is  common.  The 'priest 
having  exhausted  the  category  of  possible  sins  or  mishaps  that 
have  caused  the  suffering  of  the  petitioner,  proceeds  to  invoke 
the  gods,  goddesses,  and  the  powerful  spirits  to  loosen  the 
ban.  There  is  no  question  of  retribution  for  actual  acts  of  in- 
justice or  violence,  any  more  than  there  is  a  question  of  genu- 
ine contrition.  The  enumeration  of  the  causes  for  the  suffering 
constitutes  in  fact  a  part  of  the  incantation.  The  mention  of  the 
real  cause  in  the  long  list  —  and  the  list  aims  to  be  exhaustive, 
so  that  the  exorciser  may  strike  the  real  cause  —  goes  a  long 
way  towards  ensuring  the  departure  of  the  evil  spirit.  And  if, 
besides  striking  the  real  cause,  the  exorciser  is  fortunate  enough 
in  his  enumeration  of  the  various  gods,  goddesses,  and  spirits 
to  call  by  name  upon  the  right  god  or  spirit,  the  one  who  has 
the  power  over  the  demon  in  question,  his  object  is  achieved. 
Speaking  the  right  words  and  pronouncing  the  right  name, 
constitute,  together  with  the  performance  of  the  correct  cere- 
mony and  the  bringing  of  the  right  sacrifice,   the   conditions 


THE   MAGICAL    TEXTS.  293 

upon  which  depends  the  success  of  the  priest  in  the  incanta- 
tion ritual.  Hence  the  striking  features  of  these  texts,  the 
enumeration  of  long  lists  of  causes  for  misfortune,  long  lists 
of  powers  invoked,  and  a  variety  of  ceremonies  prescribed,  in 
the  hope  that  the  priest  will  "  hit  it "  at  one  time  or  the  other. 

Incantations  and  Prayers. 

The  incantations  naturally  shade  off  into  prayers.  Frequently 
they  are  prayers  pure  and  simple.  Powerful  as  the  sacred  for- 
mulas were  supposed  to  be,  the  ultimate  appeal  of  the  sufferer 
is  to  the  gods.  Upon  their  favor  it  ultimately  depends  whether 
the  mystic  power  contained  in  the  sacred  words  uttered  shall 
manifest  itself  to  the  benefit  of  the  supplicant  or  not.  While  it 
is  proper,  therefore,  to  distinguish  incantations  from  prayers,  the 
combination  of  the  two  could  scarcely  be  avoided  by  the  priests, 
who,  rising  in  a  measure  superior  to  the  popular  beliefs,  felt  it 
to  be  inconsistent  with  a  proper  regard  for  the  gods  not  to 
give  them  a  superior  place  in  the  magical  texts.  The  addition, 
to  the  sacred  formulas,  of  prayers  directly  addressed  to  certain 
gods  may  be  put  down  as  due  to  the  adaptation  of  ancient  texts 
to  the  needs  of  a  later  age;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  the  addition 
of  incantations  to  what  appear  to  have  been  originally  prayers, 
pure  and  simple,  is  a  concession  made  to  the  persistent  belief 
in  the  efficacy  of  certain  formulas  when  properly  uttered.  Such 
combinations  of  prayers  and  incantations  constituted,  as  would 
appear,  a  special  class  of  religious  texts;  and,  in  the  course 
of  further  editing,1  a  number  of  prayers  addressed  to  various 
deities  were  combined  and  interspersed  with  incantation  and 
ceremonial  directions  which  were  to  accompany  the  prayers. 

The  incantations  accordingly  lead  us  to  the  next  division  in 
the  religious  literature  of  the  Babylonians,  -the  prayers  and 
hymns. 

1  For  details  as  to  the  manner  in  which  this  editing  was  done,  see  King's  admirable 
remarks  in  the  Introduction  to  his  Babylonian  Magic  and  Sorcery,  pp.  xx-xxiv. 


CHAPTER    XVII. 
THE   PRAYERS   AND   HYMNS. 

From  what  has  just  been  said,  it  follows  that  the  step  from 
magical  formulas  to  prayers  and  hymns  is  but  a  small  one,  and 
does  not,  indeed,  carry  with  it  the  implication  of  changed  or 
higher  religious  conceptions.  While  the  incantation  texts  in 
their  entirety  may  be  regarded  as  the  oldest  fixed  ritual  of 
the  Babylonian-Assyrian  religion,  there  were  occasions  even  in 
the  oldest  period  of  Babylonian  history  when  the  gods  were 
approached  in  prayer  without  the  accompaniment  of  magic 
formulas.  Such  occasions  were  the  celebration  of  festivals  in 
honor  of  the  gods,  the  dedication  of  temples  or  of  sacred  stat- 
ues, and  the  completion  of  such  purely  secular  undertakings 
as  the  building  of  a  canal.  Gudea,  we  are  told,  upon  complet- 
ing a  statue  to  his  god  Nin-girsu,  prayed:  '  O  King,  whose 
great  strength  the  land  cannot  endure  (?) ;  Nin-girsu  !  grant  to 
Gudea,  who  has  built  this  house,  a  good  fate.' 1  As  in  the 
earliest,  so  in  the  latest,  period,  the  Babylonian  kings  approach 
the  gods  in  prayer  upon  completing  their  great  sacred  edifices. 
The  prayers  of  Nebuchadnezzar  are  particularly  fine  —  remark- 
able, indeed,  for  their  diction  and  elevation  of  thought.  Upon 
completing  the  restoration  of  a  temple  to  Nin-karrak  or  Gula 
in  Sippar,  he  prays:2 

\in  karrak,  lofty  goddess,  look  with  favor  upon  the  work  of  my  hands. 
Mercy  towards  me  be  the  command  of  thy  lips, 
Long  life,  abundance  of  strength, 
Health,  and  joy,  grant  to  me  as  a  gift. 

1  Inscription  I),  col.  v.  11.  2-7. 

2  Abel-Winckler,  Keilschrifttexte,  p.  33,  col.  iii.  11.  52-58. 


THE   PRAYERS  AND   HYMNS.  295 

In  the  presence  of  Shamash  and  Marduk  cause  my  deeds  to  be  regarded 

with  favor, 
Command  grace  for  me. 

A  prayer  of  the  same  king  addressed  to  Shamash,  upon 
restoring  the  great  temple  at  Sippar,  E-babbara,  runs  :  1 

O  Shamash,  great  lord,   upon   entering  joyfully  into  thy  glorious  temple 

E-babbara, 
Look  with  favor  upon  my  precious  handiwork, 
Mercy  towards  me  be  thy  command  ; 

Through  thy  righteous  order,  may  I  have  abundance  of  strength. 
Long  life,  and  a  firm  throne,  grant  to  me. 
May  my  rule  last  forever  ! 
With  a  righteous  sceptre  of  blissful  rulership, 
With  a  legitimate  staff,  bringing  salvation  to  mankind,  adorn  my  sovereignty 

forever. 
With  strong  weapons  for  the  fray,  protect  my  soldiers  ; 
Then,  O  Shamash,  by  oracle  and  dream,  answer  me  correctly  ! 
By  thy  supreme  command,  which  is  unchangeable, 
May  my  weapons  advance,  and  strike  and  overthrow  the  weapons  of  the 

enemies. 

Nebuchadnezzar's  inscriptions  are  characterized  by  the  prayer 
with  which  they  almost  invariably  close.  Whether  erecting  a 
sanctuary  or  building  a  canal  or  improving  the  walls  of  Baby- 
lon, he  does  not  fail  to  add  to  the  description  of  his  achieve- 
ments a  prayer  to  some  deity,  in  which  he  asks  for  divine  grace 
and  the  blessings  of  long  life  and  prosperity. 

There  were  other  occasions,  too,  in  which,  both  in  ancient 
times  and  in  more  modern  periods,  prayers  were  sent  up  to  the 
gods.  Kudur-mabuk,  of  the  second  dynasty  of  Ur,  informs  us 
that  he  built  a  temple,  E-nun-makh,  to  Sin  in  gratitude  to  the 
god  for  having  hearkened  to  his  prayer. 

The  Assyrian  kings  pray  to  Ashur  or  Ishtar  before  the  battle, 
and  offer  thanks  after  the  victory  has  been  gained.  "  O  god- 
dess of  Arbela  !"  says  Ashurbanabal,'2  "  I  am  Ashurbanabal,  the 
king  of  Assyria,  the  product  of  thy  hands,  created  by  thee  in 

1  Ball,  Proc.  Soc.  Bibl.  Arch.  xi.  124  seq. 

2  Annals,  Cylinder  B,  col.  v.  11.  30-46. 


296  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

the  house  of  my  father.  m  To  renew  the  sanctuaries  of  Assyria, 
and  to  enlarge  the  cities  of  Babylonia,  .  .  .  have  I  devoted 
myself  to  thy  dwelling-places,  and  have  steadfastly  worshipped 
thy  sovereignty Hearken  unto  me  !  O  thou  mis- 
tress of  mistresses,  supreme  in  battle,  mistress  of  the  fray, 
queen  of  the  gods,  .  .  .  who  speakest  good  things  in  the  pres- 
ence of  Ashur,  the  father,  that  produced  thee.  Teumman, 
king  of  Elam,  has  arrayed  his  army  and  fixed  upon  battle, 
brandishes  his  weapons  to  proceed  against  Assyria.  Do  thou 
now,  O  warrior,  like  .  .  .  drive  him  into  the  midst  of  the  fray, 
pursue  him  with  a  storm,  with  an  evil  wind."  Ishtar,  the  nar- 
rative tells  us,  hearkened  to  the  fervent  words  of  the  king.  "  Be 
not  afraid,"  says  the  goddess  to  her  royal  subject.  Elsewhere 
the  same  king  prays  more  briefly  to  Ashur  and  Ishtar.  "  May 
his  corpse  [viz.,  of  a  certain  enemy]  be  cast  before  his  enemy 
[i.e.,  before  Ashurbanabal],  and  his  remains  be  carried  off."1 

Upon  ascending  the  throne,  we  find  Nebuchadnezzar  address- 
ing a  fervent  prayer  to  the  great  god  Marduk  : 

0  Eternal  Ruler  !  Lord  of  the  Universe  ! 

Grant  that  the  name2  of  the  king  whom  thou  lovest, 

Whose  name  thou  hast  mentioned,3  may  flourish  as  seems  good  to  thee. 

Guide  him  on  the  right  path. 

1  am  the  ruler  who  obeys  thee,  the  creation  of  thy  hand. 
It  is  thou  who  hast  created  me, 

And  thou  hast  entrusted  to  me  sovereignty  over  mankind. 

According  to  thy  mercy,  O  lord,  which  thou  bestowest  upon  all, 

Cause  me  to  love  thy  supreme  rule. 

Implant  the  fear  of  thy  divinity  in  my  heart, 

Grant  to  me  whatsoever  may  seem  good  before  thee, 

Since  it  is  thou  that  dost  control  my  life. 

The  curses  also  with  which  so  many  of  the  historical  texts 
of  Babylonia  and  Assyria  close  may  be  regarded  as  prayers. 
We  are  also  justified  in  assuming  that  the  offering  of  sacrifices, 

1  Without  proper  burial,  —  the  greatest  misfortune  that  could  happen  to  the  dead. 

2  I.e..  life.  3  I.e.,  called  to  the  throne. 


THE   PRAYERS  AND  HYMNS.  297 

which  formed  at  all  times  an  essential  feature  of  the  cult,  both 
in  Babylonia  and  Assyria,  was  always  accompanied  by  some 
form  of  prayer  addressed  to  some  deity  or  to  a  group  of  deities. 
In  view  of  all  this,  no  sharp  chronological  line,  any  more  than 
a  logical  one,  can  be  drawn  marking  off  the  incantation  for- 
mulas from  the  hymns  and  prayers  pure  and  simple.  The 
conceptions  formed  of  the  gods  in  the  incantation  texts  are 
precisely  those  which  we  have  found  to  be  characteristic  of 
them  in  the  period  when  this  phase  of  the  religion  reached 
its  highest  development.  Ea  is  the  protector  of  humanity, 
Shamash  the  lord  of  justice ;  and,  if  certain  ideas  that  in  the 
prayers  are  attached  to  the  gods  —  as  wisdom  to  Sin  —  are 
absent  from  the  incantations,  it  may  be  regarded  rather  as  an 
accident  than  as  an  indication  of  any  difference  of  conception. 
The  pantheon  too,  barring  the  omission  of  certain  gods,  is  the 
same  that  we  find  it  to  be  in  the  historical  texts,  and  the  order 
in  which  the  gods  are  enumerated  corresponds  quite  closely 
with  the  rank  accorded  to  them  in  the  inscriptions  of  the  kings. 
What  variations  there  are  are  not  sufficiently  pronounced  to 
warrant  any  conclusions.  All  this  points,  as  has  been  empha- 
sized several  times,  to  the  subsequent  remodeling  of  the  texts 
in  question.  It  is  true  that  we  find  more  traces  of  earlier  and 
purely  mythological  notions  in  the  incantations  than  in  the 
hymns  and  prayers,  but  such  notions  are  by  no  means  foreign 
to  the  latter.  Even  in  those  religious  productions  of  Babylonia 
which  represent  the  flower  of  religious  thought,  we  meet  with 
views  that  reflect  a  most  primitive  mode  of  thought.  The 
proper  view,  therefore,  to  take  of  the  prayers  and  hymns  is  to 
regard  them  as  twin  productions  to  the  magical  texts,  due  to  the 
same  conceptions  of  the  power  of  the  gods,  an  emanation  of 
the  same  religious  spirit,  and  produced  at  the  same  time  that 
the  incantation  rituals  enjoyed  popular  favor  and  esteem,  and 
without  in  any  way  interfering  with  the  practice  of  the  rites 
that  these  rituals  involved. 


298  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

This  position  does  not  of  course  preclude  that  among  the 
prayers  and  hymns  that  have  been  preserved  there  are  some 
betraying  a  loftier  spirit,  a  higher  level  of  religious  thought,  and 
more  pronounced  ethical  tendencies  than  others.  Indeed,  the 
one  important  result  of  the  dissociation  of  the  address  to  the 
gods  from  the  purely  practical  magic  rites  was  to  produce 
the  conditions  favorable  to  a  development  of  higher  religious 
thought.  An  offering  of  praise  to  the  gods,  whether  it  was 
for  victory  granted  or  for  a  favor  shown,  called  forth  the  best 
and  purest  sentiments  of  which  the  individual  was  capable. 
Freed  from  all  lower  associations,  such  an  act  proved  an 
incentive  to  view  the  deity  addressed  from  his  most  favorable 
side,  to  emphasize  those  phases  which  illustrated  his  affection 
for  his  worshippers,  his  concern  for  their  needs,  his  discrimina- 
tion, and  not  merely  his  power  and  strength.  In  short,  the 
softer  and  the  more  humane  aspects  of  the  religion  would  thus 
be  brought  out.  The  individual  would  address  his  god  in 
terms  betraying  his  affection,  and  would  couple  with  him 
attributes  that  would  reflect  the  worshipper's  rather  than  the 
god's  view  of  the  purpose  and  aim  of  existence.  Whatever 
powers  of  idealization  there  lay  in  the  worshipper's  nature 
would  be  brought  into  the  foreground  by  the  intellectual  effort 
involved  in  giving  expression  to  his  best  thoughts,  when  aiming 
to  come  into  close  communion  with  a  power  upon  which  he 
felt  himself  dependent.  For  an  understanding,  therefore,  of 
the  ethical  tendencies  of  the  Babylonian  religion,  an  apprecia- 
tion of  the  prayers  and  hymns  is  of  prime  importance  ;  and 
we  shall  presently  see  that,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  the  highest 
level  of  ethical  and  religious  thought  is  reached  in  some  of  these 
hymns. 

The  prayers  of  Nebuchadnezzar  represent,  perhaps,  the  best 
that  has  been  attained  in  this  branch  of  religious  literature. 
Returning,  for  a  moment,  to  the  dedication  prayer  to  Marduk, 
addressed   by   the   king  on    the  occasion   of    his   mounting  the 


THE  PRAYERS  AND   HYMNS.  299 

throne,1  one  cannot  fail  to  be  struck  by  the  high  sense  of  the 
importance  of  his  station  with  which  the  king  is  inspired. 
Sovereignty  is  not  a  right  that  he  can  claim  —  it  is  a  trust 
granted  to  him  by  Marduk.  He  holds  his  great  office  not  for 
purposes  of  self-glorification,  but  for  the  benefit  of  his  subjects. 
In  profound  humility  he  confesses  that  what  he  has  he  owes 
entirely  to  Marduk.  He  asks  to  be  guided  so  that  he  may 
follow  the  path  of  righteousness.  Neither  riches  nor  power 
constitute  his  ambition,  but  to  have  the  fear  of  his  lord  in  his 
heart.  Such  a  plane  of  thought  is  never  reached  in  the  incan- 
tation texts.  For  all  that,  the  original  dependence  of  the 
prayers  and  hymns  upon  incantation  formulas,  tinges  even  the 
best  productions.  Some  of  the  finest  hymns,  in  which  elevated 
thoughts  are  elaborated  with  considerable  skill,  reveal  their 
origin  by  having  incantations  attached  to  them.  Again,  others 
which  are  entirely  independent  productions  are  full  of  allu- 
sions to  sickness,  demons,  and  sorcerers,  that  show  the  out- 
growth of  the  hymns  from  the  incantations ;  and  none  are  entirely 
free  from  traces  of  the  conceptions  that  are  characteristic  of 
the  incantation  texts.  The  essential  difference  between  these 
two  classes  of  closely  related  texts  may  be  summed  up  in  the 
proposition  that  the  religious  thought  which  produced  them 
both  is  carried  to  a  higher  point  of  elaboration  in  the  hymns. 
The  prayers  and  hymns  represent  the  attempt  of  the  Babylonian 
mind  to  free  itself  from  a  superstitious  view  of  the  relationship 
of  man  to  the  powers  around  him  ;  an  attempt,  but  —  it  must 
be  added  — -  an  unsuccessful  one. 

It  is  rather  unfortunate  that  many  of  the  hymns  found  in  the 
library  of  Ashurbanabal  are  in  so  fragmentary  a  condition.  As 
a  consequence  we  are  frequently  unable  to  determine  more 
than  their  general  contents.  The  colophons  generally  are 
missing, — at  least  in  those  hymns   hitherto   published,2  —  so 

1  See  p.  296. 

2  The  prayers  and  hymns  of  the  Babylonians  have  not  yet  received  the  attention 
they  deserve  at  the  hands  of  scholars.      Sayce,  e.g.,  in  the  specimens  attached  to  his 


300  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

that  we  are  left  in  the  dark  as  to  the  special  occasion  for  which 
the  hymn  was  composed.  Without  this  knowledge  it  is  quite 
impossible  to  assign  to  it  any  definite  date  except  upon  internal 
evidence.  In  the  course  of  time,  the  hymnal  literature  of- the 
great  temples  of  Babylonia  must  have  grown  to  large  propor- 
tions, and,  in  collecting  them,  some  system  was  certainly  fol- 
lowed by  the  priests  engaged  in  this  work.  There  is  evidence 
of  a  collection  having  been  made  at  some  time  of  hymns  ad- 
dressed to  Shamash.  Some  of  these  were  intended  as  a  salute 
upon  the  sun's  rising,  others  celebrated  his  setting.  These 
hymns  convey  the  impression  of  having  been  composed  for  the 
worship  of  the  god  in  one  of  his  great  temples  —  perhaps  in 
E-babbara,  at  Sippar.  We  have  several  hymns  also  addressed 
to  Marduk,  and  one  can  well  suppose  that  at  the  great  temple 
E-sagila,  in  Babylon,  a  collection  of  Marduk  hymns  must  have 
been  prepared,  and  so  for  others  of  the  great  gods.  But, 
again,  many  of  the  hymns  convey  the  impression  of  being 
merely  sporadic  productions  —  composed  for  certain  occasions, 
and  without  any  reference  to  a  possible  position  in  a  ritual. 

Of  the  hymns  so  far  published,  those  to  Shamash  are  proba- 
bly the  finest.  The  conception  of  the  sun-god  as  the  judge  of 
mankind  lent  itself  readily  to  an  ethical  elaboration.  Accord- 
ingly, we  find  in  these  hymns  justice  and  righteousness  as  the 
two  prominent  themes.  A  striking  passage  in  one  of  these 
hymns  reads  : l 

The  law  of  mankind  dost  thou  direct, 

Eternally  just  in  the  heavens  art  thou, 

( )f  faithful  judgment  towards  all  the  world  art  thou. 

Hibbert  Lectures,  pp.  479-520,  does  not  even  distinguish  properly  between  pure 
hymns  and  mere  incantations.  Now  that  Dr.  Bezold's  great  catalogue  of  the  Kou- 
junjik  collection  of  the  British  Museum  is  completed,  the  opportunity  is  favorable  for 
some  one  to  study  the  numerous  unpublished  fragments  of  hymns  in  the  British 
Museum,  and  produce  in  connection  with  those  that  have  been  published  a  compre- 
hensive work  on  the  subject.  Knudtzon's  Assyriscke  Gebete  an  </<v/  Sonnengott  may 
serve  as  a  model  for  such  a  work. 
1  IV  K.  28,  no.  1. 


THE  PRAYERS  AND  HYMNS.  301 

Thou  knowest  what  is  right,  thou  knowest  what  is  wrong. 
O  Shamash  !     Righteousness  has  lifted  up  its  neck  (?) ; 

O  Shamash  !     Wrong  like  a has  been  cut  (?) ; 

O  Shamash  !     The  support  of  Anu  and  Bel  art  thou ; 

O  Shamash !     Supreme  judge  of  heaven  and  earth  art  thou. 

After  a  break  in  the  tablet,  the  hymn  continues  : 

O  Shamash !     Supreme  judge,  great  lord  of  all  the  world  art  thou; 
Lord  of  creation,  merciful  one  of  the  world  art  thou. 

The  following  lines  now  reveal  the  purpose  of  the  hymn.  It 
is  a  prayer  for  the  life  of  the  king  : 

O  Shamash  !  on  this  day  purify  and  cleanse  the  king,  the  son  of  his  god. 
Whatever  is  evil  within  him,  let  it  be  taken  out. 

The  next  few  lines  are  a  distinct  echo  of  the  incantation 
formulas,  and  show  how  readily  prayer  passes  from  a  higher 
to  a  lower  stage  of  thought : 

Cleanse  him  like  a  vessel 1 

Illumine  him  like  a  vessel  of 2 

Like  the  copper  of  a  polished  tablet,'2  let  him  be  bright. 
Release  him  from  the  ban. 

The  same  incantation  occurs  at  the  close  of  another  hymn 
to  Shamash,  addressed  to  the  sun  upon  his  rising.3  The  colo- 
phon furnishes  the  opening  line  of  the  next  tablet,  which  also 
begins  with  an  address  to  Shamash.  We  have  here  a  clear 
indication  of  a  kind  of  Shamash  ritual  extending,  perhaps,  over 
a  number  of  tablets,  and  to  which,  in  all  probability,  the  hymn 
just  quoted  also  belongs. 

The  opening  lines  of  the  second  hymn  read  : 

O  Shamash!  out  of  the  horizon  of  heaven  thou  issuest  forth, 

The  bolt  of  the  bright  heavens  thou  openest, 

The  door  of  heaven  thou  dost  open. 

O  Shamash  !   over  the  world  dost  thou  raise  thy  head. 

O  Shamash  !  with  the  glory  of  heaven  thou  coverest  the  world. 

1  Some  specification  of  the  kind  of  vessel  meant. 

2  Inscriptions  were  written  on  various  metals,  —  gold,  silver,  antimony,  lead, 
copper,  etc.  3  IV  R.  20,  no.  2. 


302  BA  B  YL  ONI  A  N-A  SS  YKIA  N  REL IGION. 

It  would  be  difficult  to  believe,  but  for  the  express  testimony 
furnished  by  the  hymn  itself,  that  a  production  giving  evidence 
of  such  a  lofty  view  of  the  sun-god  should,  after  all,  be  no  more 
than  an  incantation.  The  same  is  the  case,  however,  with  all 
the  Shamash  hymns  so  far  published.  They  either  expressly 
or  by  implication  form  part  of  an  incantation  ritual.  Evi- 
dently, then,  such  addresses  to  Shamash  are  to  be  viewed  in 
no  other  light  than  the  exaltation  of  Nusku  in  the  '  Maklu  ' 
series,1  and  which  we  have  found  were  in  many  cases  elaborate, 
beautiful  in  diction,  and  elevated  in  thought.  So  —  to  give 
one  more  example  —  a  hymn  addressed  to  the  sun-god  at  the 
setting,  and  which  is  especially  interesting  because  of  the  meta- 
phors chosen  to  describe  the  sun's  course,  is  proved  by  the 
colophon  to  be  again  an  incantation.  It  belongs  to  a  series  — 
perhaps,  indeed,  to  the  same  as  the  specimens  furnished  : 2 

O  sun-god  in  the  midst 3  of  heaven  at  thy  setting, 

May  the  enclosure  of  the  pure  heaven  greet  thee,4 

May  the  gate  of  heaven  approach  thee, 

May  the  directing  god,  the  messenger  who  loves  thee,  direct  thy  way. 

In  E-babbara,  the  seat  of  thy  sovereignty,  thy  supremacy  rises  like  the 

dawn. 
May  A,  the  wife  whom  thou  lovest,  come  before  thee  with  joy  ; 
May  thy  heart  be  at  rest,5 

May  the  glory  of  thy  divinity  be  established  for  thee. 
<  I  Shamash  !  warrior  hero,  may  thou  be  exalted  ; 
( )  lord  of  E-babbara,  as  thou  marchest,  may  thy  course  be  directed, 
Direct  thy  path,  march  along  the  path  fixed  for  thy  course  (?). 
O  Shamash  !  judge  of  the  world,  director  of  its  laws  art  thou. 

In  the  previous  chapter,  the  hymns  addressed  to  the  moon- 
god  in  connection  with  eclipses  have  been  referred  to  and  short 

1  See  above,  p.  2S6. 

-  Published  by  Berth]  in  the  Revue  d'/issyriologie,  no.  4,  and  translated  by  Sayce, 
Hibbert  Lectures^  p.  573.  1  adopt  Sayce's  translation,  Bertin's  publication  being 
inaccessible  to  me.  '  Lit.,  speak  to  thee  of  peace. 

:1  Probably  'horizon.'  a/.t\,  may  thy  angei  depart. 


THE   PRAYERS  AND   HYMNS.  303 

specimens  given.     A  more  elaborate  hymn  to   Sin  will  further 
illustrate  the  conceptions  current  about  this  deity:  1 

O  lord,  chief  of  the  gods,  who  on  earth  and  in  heaven  alone  is  exalted. 

P'ather  Nannar,2  lord  of  increase,  chief  of  the  gods, 

Father  Nannar,  heavenly  lord, 

Father  Nannar,  moon-god,  chief  of  the  gods, 

Father  Nannar,  lord  of  Ur,  chief  of  the  gods, 

Father  Nannar,  lord  of  E-shir-gal,3  chief  of  the  gods, 

Father  Nannar,  lord  of  the  brilliant  crescent,  chief  of  the  gods, 

Father  Nannar,  whose  sovereignty  is  brought  to  perfection,  chief  of  the 
gods, 

Father  Nannar,  who  passes  along  in  great  majesty, 

O  strong  Bull,4  great  of  horns,  perfect  in  form,  with  long  flowing  beard5 
of  the  color  of  lapus-lazuli. 

Powerful  one,  self-created,  a  product  (?)  beautiful  to  look  upon,  whose  full- 
ness has  not  been  brought  forth,6 

Merciful  one,  begetter  of  everything,  who  among  living  things  occupies  a 
lofty  seat, 

Father,  merciful  one  and  restorer,  whose  weapon  (?)  maintains  the  life  of 
the  whole  world. 

Lord,  thy  divinity,  like  the  distant  heaven  and  the  wide  ocean,  is  full  (?)  of 
fear. 

Ruler  of  the  land,  protector  of  sanctuaries,  proclaimer  of  their  name. 

Father,  begetter  of  the  gods  and  of  men,  establishing  dwellings  and  grant- 
ing gifts, 

Calling  to  sovereignty,  giving  the  sceptre,  who  decreest  destinies  for  distant 
days. 

Strong  chief,  whose  wide  heart  embraces  in  mercy  all  that  exists, 

.  .  .  beautiful,  whose  knees  do  not  grow  weary,  who  opens  the  road  (?)  for 
the  gods,  his  brothers, 

.  .   .  who,  from  the  foundation  of  heaven  till  the  zenith, 

Passes  along  in  brilliancy  (?),  opening  the  door  of  heaven, 

Preparing  the  fate  (?)  of  humanity. 

1  IVR.  9.  2  '  The  illuminator,'  one  of  the  names  of  Sin.     See  above,  p.  75. 

3  The  name  of  Sin's  temple  at  Ur. 

4  A  metaphor  descriptive  of  the  moon,  because  of  the  resemblance  of  the  crescent 
to  a  horn. 

5  The  moon-god  is  pictured  with  a  long  beard  on  the  seal  cylinders.     See  p.  76. 

6  I.e.,  unlike  other  products,  the  moon's  fullness  is  self-created. 


304  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Father,  begetter  of  everything,   .   .   . 
Lord,  proclaiming  the  decisions  of  heaven  and  earth, 
Whose  command  is  not  set  aside, 
.  .  .  and  granting  water  :  for  all  that  has  life. 
No  god  reaches  to  thy  fullness. 

In  heaven  who  is  exalted  ?     Thou  alone  art  exalted. 
On  earth  who  is  exalted  ?     Thou  alone  art  exalted. 
Thy  strong  command  is  proclaimed  in  heaven,  and   the   Igigi  prostrate 

themselves. 
Thy  strong  command  is  proclaimed  on  earth,  and  the  Anunnaki  kiss  the 

ground. 
Thy  strong  command  on  high,  like  a  storm  in  the  darkness,  passes  along, 

and  nourishment  streams  forth. 
When  thy  strong  command  is  established  on  the  earth,  vegetation  sprouts 

forth. 
Thy  strong  command  stretches   over  meadows  and  heights,   and  life  is 

increased. 
Thy  strong  command  produces  right  and  proclaims  justice  to  mankind. 
Thy  strong  command,  through  the  distant  heavens  and  the  wide  earth, 

extends  to  whatever  there  is. 
Thy  strong  command,  who  can  grasp  it  ?   Who  can  rival  it  ? 
Lord,    in  heaven  is  [thy]  sovereignty,  on  earth  is  thy  sovereignty.     Among 

the  gods,  thy  brothers,  there  is  none  like  thee. 
O  King  of  Kings,  who  has  no  judge  superior  to  him,  whose  divinity  is  not 

surpassed  by  any  other  !  2 

A  more  perfect  idealization  of  the  mythological  notions  con- 
nected with  the  moon-god  can  hardly  be  imagined.  The  old 
metaphors  are  retained,  but  interpreted  in  a  manner  that 
reflects  higher  spiritual  tendencies.  The  moon  is  still  figured 
as  a  bull,  but  it  is  the  idea  of  strength  that  is  extracted  from 
the  picture  and  dwelt  upon.  The  writer  still  thinks  of  the 
moon  as  an  old  man  with  flowing  beard,  but  he  uses  the  figure 
to  convey  the  impression  of  the  brilliancy  of  the  great  orb.  The 
influence  of  the  moon  upon  the  change  of  seasons,  upon  vege- 
tation,—  a   belief   which   the    Babylonians   shared   with    other 

1  A  reference  perhaps  to  the  supposed  influence  of  the  moon  on  the  tides. 

'■^  The  rest  of  the  hymn  —  some  dozen  lines  —  is  too   fragmentary  to  warrant 

translation. 


THE   PRAYERS  AND   HYMNS.  305 

nations,  —  leads  the  writer  to  extol  the  benign  feelings  of  the 
god  towards  mankind.  The  sun-god,  through  the  glowing  heat 
that  he  develops,  becomes,  as  we  have  seen,  the  warrior  and 
even  the  destroyer,  the  consuming  force.  The  moon-god  is  the 
benefactor  of  mankind  who  restores  the  energies  of  man  weak- 
ened from  the  heat  of  the  day.  Nannar-Sin  becomes  the  giver 
of  life,  whose  mercies  are  extended  to  all.  The  gods  and  the 
spirits  follow  the  example  of  mankind  in  prostrating  them- 
selves before  the  great  orb  of  night.  The  independence  of 
the  course  that  he  pursues  in  the  heavens  places  him  beyond 
the  control  of  the  great  judge  of  the  world,  the  mighty  Sham- 
ash.  There  is  no  one  superior  to  Sin,  no  one  to  whose  com- 
mand he  must  bend.  With  all  this,  there  is  a  total  absence  of 
any  allusion  to  his  power  of  removing  the  influence  of  demons 
and  witches.  We  have  here  a  hymn  purified  from  all  associa- 
tion with  the  incantation  texts,  and  there  is  every  reason  to 
believe  that  it  was  composed  for  use  in  the  great  temple  at 
Ur,   which  is  mentioned  in  the  opening  lines. 

In  the  alternating  question  and  answer  we  have  also  a  valuable 
indication  of  the  manner  in  which  the  hymn  was  to  be  recited 
or  sung.  The  whole  production  appears  to  be  arranged  in  a 
dialogue  form,  the  lines  to  be  alternately  read  by  the  reciting 
priest  and  the  chorus  of  priests  or  worshippers.  The  same 
method  is  followed  in  other  productions,  while  in  some,  as  we 
shall  see,  the  dialogue  does  not  proceed  in  alternate  lines,  but 
is  distributed  among  a  varying  number  of  sections.  We  may 
see  in  this  style  of  composition  one  of  the  natural  outcomes  of 
the  method  pursued  in  the  incantation  texts,  where,  as  will  be 
remembered,  the  priest  first  recites  the  formulas,  and  then  calls 
upon  the  individual  before  him  to  repeat  it  once,  twice,  or 
oftener,  as  the  case  may  be.  Such  a  custom  leads  to  recital 
and  responses  in  the  hymns. 

Not  many  of  the  hymns  rise  to  such  a  height  as  the  one  just 
quoted.     There  were  certain  gods  only,  and  after  all  not  many, 


306  BAB  i  'LONIAN-ASS )  'MAN   REL  Hi  ION. 

whose  nature  was  such  as  to  make  an  ethical  development  of  the 
conceptions  formed  of  them  possible.  Besides  Shamashand  Sin, 
Ea  as  the  god  of  humanity  and  Nebo  as  the  god  of  wisdom  belong 
to  this  class.  Of  Ea,  however,  no  hymns  have  as  yet  been  found. 
This  may  of  course  be  accidental,  and  still,  if  one  bears  in  mind 
that  in  the  later  periods  of  Babylonian  history  Ea  enjoyed  a 
theoretical  popularity  rather  than  a  practical  one,  the  absence 
of  Ea  hymns  might  be  explained  as  due  to  the  lack  of  a  fixed 
ritual  in  the  Ea  temples  outside  of  the  incantation  texts.1  Ea's 
position,  like  that  of  Nusku,  was  too  marked  in  the  magical 
texts  to  encourage  a  conception  of  them  entirely  independent  of 
their  power  to  release  victims  from  the  grasp  of  the  demons. 

A  hymn  to  Nebo,  which  unfortunately  is  preserved  only  in 
part,  illustrates  the  extent  to  which  polytheistic  conceptions  may 
be  spiritualized  :  2 

.  .  .   Lord  of  Borsippa, 

.  .   .  son  of  E-sagila.3 

(J  Lord  !  To  thy  power  there  is  no  rival  power, 

O  Nebo  !  To  thy  power,  there  is  no  rival, 

To  thy  house,  E-zida,  there  is  no  rival, 

To  thy  city,  Borsippa,  there  is  no  rival, 

To  thy  district,  Babylon,  there  is  no  rival. 

Thy  weapon  is  U-sum-gallu,4  from  whose  mouth  the  breath  does 

not  issue,  blood  does  not  flow.5 
Thy  command  is  unchangeable  like  the  heavens. 
In  heaven  thou  art  supreme. 

There  are  still  plenty  of  mythological  allusions  in  this  hymn 
that  take  us  back  to  a  primitive  period  of  thought,  but  it  is  a 
hymn  prompted  by  the  love  and  reverence  that  Nebo  inspired. 
Its  direct  connection  with  the  Nebo  cult  is  shown  again  by  the 

1  We  have,  however,  a  list  (II R.  58,  no.  5)  giving  many  titles  and  names  of  Ea 
that  must  have  been  prepared  on  the  basis  of  Ea  hymns. 

-  1  V  K.  20,  no.  3.  ;i  I.e.,  of  Marduk. 

■4  This  weapon  plays  apart  in  some  of  the  Babylonian  myths. 

5  The  weapon  is  miraculous —  it  kills  Instantly,  but  without  causing  blood  to  flow. 
The  refereni  e  is  to  the  lightning  stroke. 


THE   PRAYERS  AND   HYMNS.  307 

complementary  character  of  each  two  lines.     The  whole  hymn 
was  probably  adapted  in  this  way  to  public  worship. 

Marduk,  by  virtue  of  his  relationship  to  Ea,  and  by  his  inde- 
pendent position  as  the  supreme  god  of  Babylon,  occupies  a 
middle  ground  between  Shamash,  Ea,  and  Nusku  on  the  one 
side,  and  such  gods  as  Sin  and  Nebo  on  the  other.  Some  of 
the  hymns  addressed  to  him  end  in  incantations  ;  others  form 
part  of  the  cult  arranged  for  solemn  occasions,  when  the  praises 
of  the  god  were  sung  in  connection  with  sacrificial  offerings. 

In  confirmation  of  the  theory  as  to  the  relationship  between 
magical  texts  and  hymns  above  advanced,  we  find  scarcely  any 
difference  in  the  grade  of  religious  thought  between  these  two 
classes  of  Marduk  hymns.  Both  are  equally  distinguished  by 
their  fine  diction.  A  hymn  which  celebrates  Marduk  as  the 
restorer  of  the  dead  to  life,  and  yet  forms  part  of  an  incanta- 
tion text,  reads : 1 

O  merciful  one  among  the  gods ! 

O  merciful  one  who  loveth  to  give  life  to  the  dead  ! 

Marduk,  king  of  heaven  and  earth, 

King  of  Babylon,  lord  of  E-sagila, 

King  of  E-zida,  lord  of  E-makh-tila, 

Heaven  and  earth  are  thine. 

The  whole  of  heaven  and  earth  are  thine, 

The  spell  affording  life  is  thine, 

The  breath  of  life  is  thine, 

The  pure  incantation  of  the  ocean2  is  thine, 

Mankind,  the  black-headed  race,3 

The  living  creatures,  as  many  as  there  are,  and  exist  on  earth, 

As  many  as  there  are  in  the  four  quarters, 

The  Igigi  of  the  legions  of  heaven  and  earth, 

As  many  as  there  are, 

To  thee  do  they  incline  (?). 

Thou  art  the  skedu,  thou  art  the  lamassu. 

Thou  restorest  the  dead  to  life,  thou  bringest  things  to  completeness  (?). 

O  merciful  one  among  the  gods  ! 
1  IV  R.  29,  no.  1.  2  Perhaps  a  reference  to  Ea. 

^  3  Name  for  the  inhabitants  of  Babylonia,  and  then  used  in  general  for  mankind. 
Cf.  p.  2S1. 


30S  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

One  scarcely  detects  any  difference  between  such  a  hymn 
and  those  to  Sin  and  Nebo.  The  lines  are  adapted,  like  the 
other  specimens,  for  recitation  by  two  parties.  The  last  line 
forms  a  solemn  close  to  a  section  of  this  hymn.  In  the  section 
that  follows,  the  same  character  is  maintained  till  we  approach 
the  close,  when  the  exorciser  steps  in  and  asks  Marduk  to 

Expel  the  disease  of  the  sick  man, 
The  plague,  the  wasting  disease  .  .  . 

and  the  various  classes  of  demons,  utukku,  alu,  etc.,  are  intro- 
duced. 

Compare  this  now  with  some  passages  in  a  prayer  addressed 
to  Marduk  :  ' 

A  resting-place  for  the  lord  (of  E-sagila)  is  thy  house. 

A  resting-place  for  the  lord  of  E-makh-tila  is  thy  house. 

E-sagila,  the  house  of  thy  sovereignty,  is  thy  house. 

May  the  city  speak  '  rest ' 2  to  thee  —  thy  house. 

May  Babylon  speak  peace  to  thee3  —  thy  house. 

May  the  great  Ami,  the  father  of  the  gods,  tell  thee  when  there  will  be 

rest. 
May  the  great  mountain,  the  father  of  the  gods,4  tell  thee  when  there  will 

be  rest. 

Look  favorably  upon  thy  house, 

Look  favorably  upon  the  city,  O  lord  of  rest  I 

May  he  restore  to  his  place  the  bolt   Babylon,  the  enclosure  E-sagila,  the 

edifice  E-zida,5 
May  the  gods  of  heaven  and  earth  speak  to  thee,  O  lord  of  rest. 

Here  we  have  specific  references  to  Marduk.  Everything 
about  the  city  of  Babylon  is  associated  with  the  god.  The 
great  gods  pay  homage  to  Marduk.  The  whole  hymn,  con- 
ceived as  a  royal  prayer  to  the  god,  clearly  formed  part  of  the 
ritual  prepared  for  the  great  Marduk  temple  at  Babylon.     The 

1  [VR.  18,  no.  2.     Badly  preserved.  3  I.e.,  salute  thee. 

2  I.e.,  call  upon  thee  to  be  pacified.  4  Bel. 

•'  The  strongly  fortified  city  of  Babylon  is  compared  to  a  bolt  and  the  temple  to 
an  enclosure. 


THE   PRAYERS  AND   HYMNS.  309 

hymn  closes,  as  so  many  others,  with  a  prayer  on  behalf  of 
the  king.     The  god  is  asked 

To  establish  firmly  the  foundation  of  the  throne  of  his  sovereignty, 
So  that  he  may  nourish  (?)  mankind  to  distant  days. 

'  Rest,'  in  the  liturgical  language,  implied  cessation  of  anger. 
Marduk,  as  the  '  lord  of  rest,'  was  the  pacified  deity  ;  and  since  it 
was  a  necessary  condition  in  obtaining  an  answer  to  petitions 
that  the  god  should  be  free  from  anger,  the  city,  the  temple, 
and  the  gods  are  represented  as  unitedly  speaking  to  him  — 
appealing  to  him  to  be  at '  rest.'  The  production  might,  there- 
fore, be  called  a  '  pacification  hymn.'  The  god  has  shown  his 
anger  by  bringing  on  misfortune  of  some  shape.  His  divine 
associates  are  no  less  anxious  than  his  human  subjects  to 
pacify  the  mighty  god. 

Passing  on  to  another  god,  a  hymn  to  the  storm-god,  Ram- 
man,  enables  us  to  specify  the  great  terror  that  the  god,  as  the 
general  source  of  disturbances  in  the  heavenly  phenomena, 
inspired.     The  god  is  addressed  x  as 

The  lord  who  in  his  anger  holds  the  heavens  in  his  control, 

Ramman  in  his  wrath  the  earth  has  shaken. 

The  mighty  mountain  —  thou  dost  overturn  it. 

At  his  anger,  at  his  wrath, 

The  gods  of  heaven  mount  up  to  heaven,2 

The  gods  of  earth  enter  the  earth. 

Into  the  foundation  of  heaven  Shamash  3  enters. 

The  illustrations  adduced  will  suffice  to  show  the  manner  in 
which  the  Babylonians  conceived  the  relationship  between  man- 
kind and  the  gods.  The  element  of  fear  alternated  with  that 
of  love,  and  no  matter  how  near  the  gods  were  felt  to  be,  one 
was  never  certain  of  their  good  will. 

Another  feature  of  some  of  these  hymns  which  calls  for 
special  mention  is  the  introduction  of  the  deity  as  himself  or 

1 IVR.  28,  no.  2.  -  I.e.,  fly  to  a  safe  place. 

3  I.e.,  the  sun  is  obscured. 


310  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

herself  taking  part  in  the  dialogue.  A  hymn  addressed  to 
Ishtar,  as  the  morning  and  evening  star,1  belongs  to  this  class.2 
It  begins  with  a  glorification  of  the  goddess  as  the  source  of 
light,  of  being,  and  of  earthly  blessings.  The  worshipper 
speaks : 

O  light  of  heaven  who  arises  like  fire  over  the  earth,  who  art  fixed  in  the 

earth, 
Thou  art  exalted  in  strength  like  the  earth. 
As  for  thee,  a  just  path  be  graciously  granted  to  thee 
When  thou  enterest  the  house  of  man. 
A  hyena  on  the  hunt  for  a  young  lamb  art  thou, 
A  restless  lion  art  thou. 

A  destructive  handmaid,  the  beauty  of  heaven, 
A  handmaid  is  Ishtar,  the  beauty  of  heaven, 
Who  causest  all  being  to  emanate,  O  beauty  of  heaven, 
Associate  (?)  of  the  sun,  O  beauty  of  heaven  ! 

At  this  point  the  goddess  speaks,  through  the  officiating 
priest,  who  acts  as  the  mediator  : 

For  determining  oracles  3  I  have  been  established,  in  perfection  have  I  been 
established. 

For  determining  oracles  of  my  father  Sin,  I  have  been  established,  in  per- 
fection have  I  been  established. 

For  determining  oracles  of  my  brother  Shamash,  I  have  been  established, 
in  perfection  have  I  been  established. 

Me  has  my  father  Sin  fixed,  to  determine  oracles  I  have  been  established, 

Shining  anew  in  heaven,  for  determining  oracles  I  have  been  established,  in 
perfection  have  I  been  established. 

From  the  regular  repetition  of  the  refrain  at  the  end  of  each 
line,  one  is  tempted  to  conclude  that  these  utterances  of  the 
goddess  were  to  be  recited  by  an  officiating  priest  with  the 
assistance  of  a  chorus  of  priests,  to  whom  the  refrain  was 
assigned,  or  it  may  be  that  the  lines  were  alternately  recited  by 

1  See  above,  p.  84. 

2  Delitzsch,  Assyrisi  he  Lesestiicke  (3d  edition),  pp.  134-136. 

3  The  portents  taken  through  observation  (if  the  position  of  Ishtar  or  Venus  in  the 
heavens  were  of  especial  value. 


THE   PRAYERS  AND   HYMNS.  311 

the  priest  and  the  chorus.     In  the  section  that  follows,  this 
alternative  character  of  the  lines  is  more  clearly  indicated  : 

Full  of  delight  is  my  majesty,  full  of  delight  is  my  supremacy, 

Full  of  delight  do  I  as  a  goddess  walk  supreme. 

Ishtar,  the  goddess  of  morning  am  I, 

Ishtar,  the  goddess  of  evening  am  I, 

(1  am)  Ishtar,  —  to  open  the  lock  of  heaven  belongs  to  my  supremacy. 

Heaven  I  destroy,  earth  I  devastate,1  —  such  is  my  supremacy. 

The  destroyer  of  heaven,  the  devastator  of  the  earth,  — such  is  my  majesty. 

To  rise  up  out  of  the  foundation  of  heaven, 

Whose  fame  shines  among  the  habitation  of  men,  —  such  is  my  supremacy. 

Queen  of  heaven  that  on  high  and  below  is  invoked,  —  such  is  my  supre- 
macy. 

The  mountain  I  sweep  away  altogether,  —  such  is  my  supremacy. 

The  destroyer  of  the  mountain  walls  am  I,  their  great  foundation  am  I, 
—  such  is  my  supremacy. 

The  hymn  closes  with  a  prayer  that  the  anger  of  the  god  be 
appeased  : 

May  thy  heart  be  at  rest,  thy  liver2  be  pacified. 

By  the  great  lord  Ami,  may  thy  heart  be  at  rest. 

By  the  lord,  the  great  mountain  Bel,  may  thy  liver  be  pacified. 

O  goddess,  mistress  of  heaven,  may  thy  heart  be  at  rest. 

O  supreme  mistress  of  heaven,  may  thy  liver  be  pacified. 

O  supreme  mistress  of  the  E-anna,3  may  thy  heart  be  at  rest. 

O  supreme  mistress  of  the  land  of  Erech,  may  thy  liver  be  pacified. 

O  supreme  mistress  of  the  shining  Erech,  may  thy  heart  be  at  rest. 

O  supreme  mistress  of  the  mountain  of  the  universe,  may  thy  liver  be  pacified. 

O  supreme  mistress,  queen  of  E-tur-kalama,4  may  thy  heart  be  at  rest. 

O  supreme  mistress,  queen  of  Babylon,  may  thy  liver  be  pacified. 

O  supreme  mistress,  whose  name  is  Nana,  may  thy  heart  be  at  rest. 

O  mistress  of  the  house,  lady  of  the  gods,  may  thy  liver  be  pacified. 

1  Phrases  introduced  to  illustrate  the  power,  not  the  function,  of  Ishtar. 

2  The  liver  as  the  seat  of  the  emotions. 

3  I.e.,  house  of  heaven.     Name  of  Ishtar's  temple  at  Erech. 
*/.«.,  court  of  the  universe.     Name  of  one  of  Ishtar"s  temples. 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

PENITENTIAL    PSALMS. 

It  will  be  recalled  that  both  in  the  Ishtar  hymn  and  in  the  one 
to  Marduk  above  quoted,  great  stress  is  laid  upon  pacifying  the 
deity  addressed.  Starting  from  the  primitive  conception  that 
misfortunes  were  a  manifestation  of  divine  anger,  the  Babylo- 
nians never  abandoned  the  belief  that  transgressions  could 
be  atoned  for  only  by  appeasing  the  anger  of  the  deity.  But 
within  this  limitation,  an  ethical  spirit  was  developed  among  the 
Babylonians  that  surprises  us  by  its  loftiness  and  comparative 
purity.  Instead  of  having  recourse  merely  to  incantation 
formulas,  the  person  smitten  with  disease  or  pursued  by  ill 
fortune  would  turn  in  prayer  to  some  god  at  whose  instigation 
the  evil  has  come  and  appeal  for  the  pacification  of  the  divine 
wrath.  But  while  the  origin  of  the  so-called  penitential  psalms 
is  thus  closely  bound  up  with  the  same  order  of  thought  that 
gave  rise  to  the  incantation  texts,  no  less  significant  is  the 
divorce  between  the  two  classes  of  compositions  that  begins 
already  at  an  early  stage  of  the  literary  period.  The  incanta- 
tions, it  is  true,  may  be  combined  with  compositions  that  be- 
long to  a  higher  order  of  religious  thought.  We  have  seen 
that  they  have  been  so  combined,  and  yet  the  dividing  line 
between  the  two  is  also  sharply  marked.  Zimmern,  to  whom, 
more  than  to  any  one  else,  the  interpretation  of  these  peniten- 
tial psalms  is  due,  has  suggested1  that  national  misfortunes 
rather  than  private  grievances  may  have  given  an  impetus 
to  this  class  of  literary  productions.  It  is  true  that  historical 
references  are  found  in  some  of  the  hymns,  and  it  is  also  signifi- 

1  Babylonische  Buss/salmen,  pp.  1,2. 


PENITENTIAL   PSALMS.  313 

cant  that  not  only  do  these  psalms  occasionally  embody  a 
prayer  for  the  king,  —  thus  giving  to  them  a  national  rather 
than  a  personal  character, — but  the  kings  are  called  upon  in 
times  of  distress  to  accompany  their  libations  to  the  gods  with 
the  recitation  of  a  '  lament  to  quiet  the  heart,' l  as  the  Babylo- 
nians called  this  class  of  hymns. 

One  can  easily  see  how  such  events  as  defeat  in  war  would 
be  ascribed  to  divine  wrath,  and  not  to  the  workings  of  evil 
spirits  or  witches  ;  and  while  the  personal  tone  that  pervades 
most  of  the  penitential. psalms  makes  them  applicable  to  condi- 
tions affecting  the  individual  as  well  as  the  nation,  the  peculiar 
fitness  of  such  psalms  for  occasions  of  national  importance  was 
a  powerful  factor  in  bringing  about  their  sharp  separation  from 
the  incantation  formulas. 

Just  as  in  the  hymns  we  found  that  the  mere  contemplation 
of  the  attributes  of  the  gods,  apart  from  the  manifestation  of 
these  attributes  in  any  particular  instance,  led  to  a  loftier 
interpretation  of  the  relationship  existing  between  the  gods 
and  mankind,  so  the  thought  that  evil  was  due  in  the  last 
instance  to  the  anger  of  some  god  led  to  greater  emphasis 
being  laid  upon  this  relationship.  The  anger  of  the  god 
prompted  both  the  individual  and  the  nation  to  greater  zeal  in 
securing  the  deity's  love.  To  an  even  greater  extent  than  in 
the  hymns  is  the  element  of  love  introduced  into  the  penitential 
psalms,  and  when  not  directly  expressed,  is  so  clearly  implied 
as  to  form  the  necessary  complement  to  the  conception  of 
the  divine  wrath.  These  psalms  indeed  show  the  religious 
and  ethical  thought  of  Babylonia  at  its  best.  Their  ethical 
phase  manifests  itself  more  particularly  in  the  conception  of 
sin  which  is  unfolded  in  them.  The  misfortunes  of  life,  more 
especially  those  which  could  not  so  readily  be  ascribed  to  the 
presence  of  evil  spirits,  filled  the  individual  with  his  sense  of 
guilt.      In  some  way,  known  or  unknown  to  him,  he  must  have 

1  I.e.,  of  the  deity. 


314  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

offended  the  deity.     The  thought  whether  the  deity  was  justified 
in  exercising  his  wrath  did  not  trouble  him  any  more  than  the 
investigation   of    the    question    whether    the    punishment   was 
meted  out  in  accordance  with  the  extent  of  the  wrong  com- 
mitted.     It  was  not  necessary  for  the  deity  to  be  just  ;  it  was 
sufficient  that  some  god  felt  himself  to  be  offended,  whether 
through  the  omission  of  certain   rights  or   through  an  error  in 
the  performance  of  rites   or  what  not.      The  two  facts  which 
presented  themselves  with  overpowering  force  to  the  penitent 
were   the   anger  of   the   deity   and  the  necessity  of  appeasing 
that   anger.       Beyond    this    conclusion    the    Babylonians    and 
Assyrians  did  not  go,  but  this  reasoning  also  sufficed  to  bring 
the  conviction  home  to  him  that  his  misfortunes  were  the  result 
of  some  offence.     The  man  afflicted  was  a  sinner,  and  the  cor- 
ollary to  this  position  was  that  misfortunes  come  in  consequence 
of  sin.     Through  the  evils  alone  which  overtook  one,  it  became 
clear  to   an  individual  that   he   had   sinned    against  the  deity. 
Within  this  circle  of  ideas  the  penitential    psalms  of  Babylonia 
move.     They  do  not  pass  wholly  outside  of  the  general  Semitic 
view  that  sin   is  a  'missing  of  the  mark,'- -a  failure,  whether 
voluntary  or  involuntary,  to  comply  with  what  was  demanded 
by   the   deity   under    whose   protection    one   stood.       I  kit   one 
became  conscious  of  having 'missed  the  mark'  only  when  evil  in 
some  form-    disease,  ill  luek,  deluge,  drought,  defeat,  destruc- 
tion, storms,  pecuniary  losses,   family    discords,   the   death   of 
dear  ones  —  came  to  remind  the  individual  or  the  nation  of  the 
necessity  of  securing  the  favor  of  the  deity  again.      Still  within 
this  sphere   there  were  great  possibilities  of  ethical  progress, 
and  some  of  the   Babylonian   psalms  breathe  a  spirit    and  are 
couched  in  a  diction  that  have  prompted  a  comparison  with  the 
Biblical  psalms.1       Thrown,  as  the  sinner  felt  himself  to  be, 
upon  the  mercy  of  the  angry  deity,  it  mattered  little  what  had 

i  Sec  an  article  by  Francis  Brown,  "  The  Religious  Poetry  of  Babylonia,"  Presby- 
terian Review,  lcNSS. 


PENITENTIAL    PSALMS.  315 

called  forth  this  wrath  or  whether  the  deity  was  conceived  as 
acting  in  accordance  with  just  ideas.  The  thought  that  would 
engage  the  entire  attention  of  the  penitent  would  be  the 
appeasement  of  his  god.  To  effect  this,  he  would  not  stop 
short  at  exaggerating  his  own  guilt.  He  would  manifest  a 
contrition  of  spirit  that  would  not  be  the  less  sincere  for  being, 
perhaps,  out  of  proportion  to  the  character  of  his  sin  when 
judged  by  our  standards. 

Corresponding  to  the  humiliation  of  mind  to  which  he  would 
be  brought,  his  longing  to  be  reconciled  to  the  offended  deity 
would  be  intensified.  He  would  address  this  deity  in  terms  of 
strong  endearment,  magnify  his  or  her  powers,  as  the  case  may 
be,  and  belittle  himself  and  his  own  worth.  The  result  of  such 
a  mental  discipline  could  not  but  react  healthfully  on  the  mind 
of  the  penitent.  The  penitent  would  arise  from  his  prayer 
with  a  more  spiritual  conception  of  the  relationship  existing 
between  himself  and  his  god.  Not  appealing  for  any  material 
benefits  for  the  time  being,  but  concerned  only  with  appeasing 
the  divine  wrath,  the  single  burden  of  his  prayer  "  that  the 
heart  of  the  offended  god  might  be  '  at  rest' "  would  be  marked 
by  an  intensity  all  the  stronger  for  being  at  least  comparatively 
pure  of  grosser  associations. 

All  these  features  combined  serve  to  make  the  penitential 
psalms  the  flower  of  the  religious  literature  of  Babylonia.  The 
productions  not  only  represent  the  highest  stage  which  religious 
thought  reached  in  the  Euphrates  Valley,  but,  in  a  certain  sense, 
constitute  the  only  productions  in  cuneiform  literature  that  have 
a  permanent  literary  value. 

We  find  these  compositions  marked  by  a  third  feature  which, 
however,  as  we  have  already  seen,  is  not  peculiar  to  them,  - 
the  dialogue  form.  In  order  to  bring  about  a  reconciliation 
with  an  angered  god,  three  personages  were  necessary  in  the 
drama,  —  the  god,  the  penitent,  and,  thirdly,  the  priest,  acting  as 
mediator  between  the  sinner  and  his  deity.      The  deity,  accord- 


316  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION 

ing  to  Babylonian  notions,  could  not  be  approached  directly, 
but  only  through  his  chosen  messengers,  --  the  priests.  This 
idea  of  mediation,  as  against  the  immediate  approach,  was  so 
pronounced  as  to  lead,  as  we  have  seen,  to  the  frequent  asso- 
ciation with  a  god  of  a  second  divine  personage,  --  his  son  or 
his  servant,  —  through  whom  the  petitions  of  mankind  were 
brought  to  the  throne  of  grace.1  The  priest  was  similarly  con- 
ceived as  the  messenger  of  the  god,  and,  by  virtue  of  this  office, 
endowed  with  a  certain  measure,  at  least,  of  divine  power.  He 
was,  in  the  full  sense,  the  god's  vicar  on  earth, --his  repre- 
sentative, who  could,  as  we  saw  in  the  Ishtar  hymn,  speak  in 
the  first  person  on  behalf  of  the  god.2  The  more  manifest 
mission  of  the  priest,  however,  was  to  intercede  on  behalf  of 
the  mass  of  mankind.  Accepting  the  sacrifices  offered  by  the 
laity,  it  was  he  that  secured  their  gracious  acceptance  on  the 
part  of  the  deity.  It  was  the  priest,  as  we  have  seen,  who 
instructed  the  individual  to  pronounce  the  magic  formulas  that 
would  be  appropriate  to  his  case  ;  and  just  as  in  the  incantation 
texts  the  priest  accompanied  the  recitation  of  the  formulas 
with  an  appeal  of  his  own,  so  in  the  penitential  psalms,  he 
stood  at  the  penitent's  side,  instructing  him  what  to  say, 
and  emphasizing  the  confessions  of  the  penitent  by  an  as- 
surance to  the  deity  of  the  sincerity  of  the  penitent,  coupled 
with  a  fervent  request  that  the  prayer  for  '  appeasement, ' 
which  involved  all  that  we  mean  by  forgiveness,  be  graciously 
answered. 

It  is  unfortunate  that  the  text  of  none  of  the  penitential 
psalms  is  perfectly  preserved.  We  must,  therefore,  content 
ourselves  in  our  illustrations  with  more  or  less  imperfect 
extracts.      It  is  to  be  noted,  too,  that   often  the  exact  meaning 

1  Compare  the  relationship  existing  between  Ea  and  Marduk.  noted  above, p.276. 
Similarly,  Nnsku  was  the  messenger  to  Bel.      See  p.  279. 

-  ( )n  the  wider  aspects  of  this  conception  of  the  priest  among  ancient  nations,  see 
Frazer,  The  Golden  Bough,  passim. 


PENITENTIAL   PSALMS.  317 

of  the  lines  escapes  us,  owing  to  the  obscurity  of  terms 
employed  or  to  the  gaps  in  the  texts  themselves.  With  few 
exceptions  the  psalms  appear  in  the  double  style  characteristic 
of  so  large  a  section  of  the  religious  literature  of  the  Babylon- 
ians, the  '  ideographic  '  composition  being  accompanied  by  a 
phonetic  transliteration.  The  fact,  however,  that  we  have  at 
least  one  text  (IVR.  59,  no.  2)  in  the  phonetic  style  alone,  is 
sufficient  to  show  that  no  special  weight  is  to  be  attached  to 
the  supposed  '  bilingual '  character  of  the  others.  This  double 
style  is  not  a  feature  that  need  be  taken  into  account  in  deter- 
mining the  age  of  this  class  of  compositions.  The  historical 
references  in  some  of  them  have  prompted  Zimmern  to  give 
his  partial  assent  to  the  opinion  which  would  assign  them,  or 
some  of  them,  to  the  age  of  Hammurabi.  Beyond  such  refer- 
ences, which  are  not  as  clear  as  they  might  be,  we  have  no 
data  through  which  their  age  can  be  determined  ;  but  so  far  as 
the  ideas  which  they  convey  and  the  religious  spirit  manifested 
in  them  are  concerned,  there  is  no  reason  why  they  should  not 
be  assigned  to  as  early  a  period  as  some  of  the  incantation 
texts.  It  is  characteristic  of  the  Babylonian,  as,  in  a  measure, 
of  all  religions,  that  the  old  and  the  new  go  hand  in  hand; 
that  more  advanced  conceptions,  so  far  from  setting  aside 
primitive  ones,  can  live  and  thrive  in  the  same  atmosphere 
with  the  latter.  We  may,  therefore,  assume  that  penitential 
psalms  existed  as  early  as  2000  B.C.  Whether  any  of  these 
that  have  been  preserved  go  back  to  that  period  is  another 
question.  One  gains  the  impression  from  a  careful  study  of 
them  that  most  of  these,  if  not  all,  belong  to  a  somewhat  later 
period,  nearer  to  the  first  millenium  than  to  the  second  mil- 
lenium  before  our  era.  The  Assyrians  adopted  these  psalms, 
as  they  did  the  other  features  of  the  religious  literature  of 
the  Babylonians,  and  enriched  the  collection  by  productions 
of  their  own  which,  however,  follow  closely  the  Babylonian 
models. 


318  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

A  particularly  beautiful  psalm,  judging  from  the  portion 
preserved,  represents  the  penitent  addressing  his  goddess  — 
probably  Ishtar  —  as  follows  : l 

I,  thy  servant,  full  of  sighs,  call  upon  thee; 

The  fervent  prayer  of  him  who  has  sinned  do  thou  accept. 

If  thou  lookest  upon  a  man,  that  man  lives. 

O  all-powerful  mistress  of  mankind, 

Merciful  one,  to  whom  it  is  good  to  turn,  who  hears2  sighs ! 

At  this  point  the  priest  takes  up  the  thread  to  emphasize  the 
appeal  of  the  penitent  by  adding  to  it  his  own.  He  prays  to 
the  goddess: 

His  god  and  goddess  being  angry  with  him,  he  calls  upon  thee, 
Turn  towards  him  thy  countenance,  take  hold  of  his  hand. 

The  penitent  continues  : 

Besides  thee,  there  is  no  guiding  deity. 

I  implore  thee  to  look  upon  me  and  hear  my  sighs. 

Proclaim  pacification,3  and  may  thy  soul  be  appeased. 

How  long,  O  my  mistress,  till  thy  countenance  be  turned  towards  me. 

like  doves,  I  lament,  I  satiate  myself  with  sighs. 

The  priest  once  more  sums  up  the  penitent's  prayer: 

With  pain  and  ache,  his  soul  is  full  of  sighs; 
Tears  he  weeps,  he  pours  forth  lament  (?). 

A  trait  which  appears  in  many  of  these  psalms  is  the  ano- 
nymity beneath  which  the  offended  deity  is  veiled.  His  or  her 
name  is  often  not  mentioned,  the  deity  being  simply  referred  to 
as  god  or  goddess,  and  at  times  it  is  left  doubtful  whether  the 
sinner  has  '  sinned  '  against  the  demands  of  a  god  or  a  goddess, 


or  against  several   deities.     This  feature  is  not  without  signifi- 

1  Zimmern,  no.  i  ;    IVR.  29,  no.  5. 

-  Lit.,  '  accepts.' 

:!  In  the  original  appears  a  phrase  which  signifies  literally  'when  nt  last."  —  an 
abbreviation  for  '  when  will  there  be  rest,'  and  which  lias  become  a  kind  of  technical 
phrase  to  indicate,  again,  the  Imped  for  pacification  of  the  deity. 


PENITENTIAL    PSALMS.  319 

cance.  In  some  cases,  no  doubt,  the  name  of  the  specific  deity 
was  to  be  added  by  the  penitent,1  but  in  others  this  does  not 
appear  to  be  indicated.  The  anonymity  is  the  natural  result 
of  the  conception  of  sin  involved  in  these  productions.  The 
sinner,  becoming  conscious  of  his  guilt  only  as  a  conclusion 
drawn  from  the  fact  of  his  suffering  from  some  misfortune, 
could  only  surmise,  but  never  be  entirely  certain,  wherein  his 
offence  consisted  or  what  deity  he  had  offended.  In  the  case 
of  the  recital  of  incantation  formulas,  the  question  as  to  the 
offended  deity  was  a  minor  one,  and  may  indeed,  at  an  earlier 
stage  of  thought,  not  have  entered  into  consideration  at  all. 
This  anonymity,  therefore,  which  characterized  the  penitential 
psalms  was  not  due  to  any  advance  in  thought,  but  one  can 
easily  see  how  it  led  to  such  an  advance.  What  may  be  called 
the  personal  aspects  of  the  gods  were  less  accentuated.  The 
very  fact  that  no  particular  god  could  in  many  cases  be  speci- 
fied entailed,  as  a  consequence,  that  the  views  held  of  the  gods 
gained  in  abstractness.  The  general  thought  of  one's  depend- 
ence upon  these  supernatural  powers,  without  further  specifica- 
tion, superinduced  a  grouping  of  the  gods  under  a  common 
aspect,  as  the  directors  of  man's  fate.  In  short,  the  notion  of 
deity,  not  indeed  as  a  unit,  but  as  a  collective  idea,  begins  to 
dawn  in  Babylonia.  At  the  same  time  we  must  beware  of 
exaggerating  the  force  that  this  notion  acquired.  There  is  not 
the  slightest  trace  of  any  approach  to  real  monotheism  in  Baby- 
lonia, nor  can  it  even  be  said  that  the  penitential  psalms  con- 
stitute a  bridge  leading  to  such  an  approach.  The  strong  hold 
that  astrology  at  all  times,  and  up  to  the  latest  periods,  had 
upon  both  the  popular  and  the  educated  mind  was  in  itself 
sufficient  to  prevent  the  Babylonians  from  passing,  to  any  con- 
siderable degree,  beyond  the  stage  in  which  the  powers  of 
nature  were  personified  and  imbued  with  real  life.      The  peni- 

1  The  colophon  to  one  of  them  (IVR.  10,  Reverse  52)  declares  that  the  production 
in  question  is  a  "  penitential  psalm  for  any  god  whatsoever." 


320  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

tential  psalms  presuppose  this  belief  as  much  as  any  other 
branch  of  the  religious  literature;  they  merely  illustrate  this 
belief  in  the  purest  form  of  which,  in  the  course  of  its  develop- 
ment, it  was  capable. 

A  psalm  in  which  this  anonymity  of  the  offended  god  is 
more  strongly  brought  out  begins  as  follows.1  The  penitent 
prays: 

()  that  the  wrath  of  my  lord's  heart  return  to  its  former  condition,2 

C)  that  the  god  who  is  unknown  be  pacified, 

O  that  the  goddess  unknown  be  pacified, 

( )  that  the  god  known  or  unknown  3  be  pacified, 

( )  that  the  goddess  known  or  unknown  be  pacified, 

< )  that  the  heart  of  my  god  be  pacified, 

()  that  the  god  or  goddess  known  or  unknown  be  pacified! 

The  penitent,  it  will  be  seen,  does  not  know  whether  it  is  a 
god  or  a  goddess  whom  he  has  offended.  He  therefore  appeals 
to  both.  He  goes  on  to  say  that  he  is  not  even  aware  of  the 
sin  that  he  has  committed: 

The  sin  that  I  have  committed  I  know  not. 

And  yet  he  must  have  sinned  or  he  would  not  suffer  as  he 
does.  In  addition  to  his  confession,  he  imposes  the  hardship 
of  fasting  upon  himself  by  way  of  penance  : 

Food  I  have  not  eaten  ; 
Clear  water  I  have  not  drunk. 

The  reference  to  fasting  occurs  so  frequently  in  these  psalms 
that  one  is  tempted  to  conclude  that  such  a  bodily  castigation 
was  demanded  by  the  ritual  of  the  Babylonians  : 4 

1  IV  K.  10.     Zimmern,  no.  4. 

2  I.e.,  be  pacified. 

8  I.e.,  '  whoever  he  may  be,'  as  we  would  say. 

■'  Among  many  nations  fasting  is  resorted  to  as  a  means  of  atonement.     It  must 
have  been  common  among  the  Hebrews  during  the  period  of  the  Babylonian  exile 
perhaps  through  Babylonian  influence.     See  Isaiah,  lviii.  3. 


PENITENTIAL   PSALMS.  321 

An  offence  have  I  unwittingly  committed  against  my  god, 
A  sin  against  my  goddess  unwittingly  been  guilty  of, 
0  lord,  my  sins  are  many,  great  are  my  transgressions, 
O  my  god,  my  sins  are  many,  great  are  my  transgressions, 

0  my  goddess,  my  sins  are  many,  great  are  my  transgressions, 
Known  or  unknown  god,  my  sins  are  many,  great  are  my  transgressions. 

Again  the  sinner  protests  his  innocence  of  the  wrong  he  has 
done.      He  only  knows  that 

The  lord  has  looked  upon  me  in  the  rage  of  his  heart, 

A  god  has  visited  me  in  his  wrath, 

A  goddess  has  become  angry  with  me  and  brought  me  into  pain, 

A  known  or  unknown  god  has  oppressed  me, 

A  known  or  unknown  goddess  has  brought  sorrow  upon  me. 

1  seek  for  help,  but  no  one  takes  my  hand. 
I  weep,  but  no  one  approaches  me. 

I  call  aloud,  but  no  one  hears  me. 

Full  of  woe,  I  grovel  in  the  dust  without  looking  up. 

To  my  merciful  god  I  turn,  speaking  with  sighs. 

The  feet  of  my  goddess  I  kiss  imploringly  (?). 

To  the  known  or  unknown  god  do  I  speak  with  sighs, 

To  the  known  or  unknown  goddess  do  I  speak  with  sighs. 

O  lord,  look  upon  me,  accept  my  lament, 

O  goddess,  look  upon  me,  accept  my  lament, 

O  known  or  unknown  goddess,  look  upon  me,  accept  my  lament ! 

In  this  strain  he  proceeds  for  some  time,  until  he  is  inter- 
rupted by  the  priest,  who  briefly  adds: 

O  lord,  do  not  cast  aside  thy  servant, 
Overflowing  with  tears,1  take  him  by  the  hand  ! 

The    penitent  closes  the  prayer  by  another  and   still  more 
earnest  appeal : 

The  sin  I  have  committed  change  to  mercy, 

The  wrong  I  have  done,  may  the  wind  carry  off. 

Tear  asunder  my  many  transgressions  as  a  garment. 

My  god,  my  sins  are  seven  times  seven,2  forgive  me  my  sins. 

1  Lit.,  rushing  water.  2  je,}  verv  numerous. 


322  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION 

My  goddess,  my  sins  are  seven  times  seven,  forgive  me  my  sins. 

Known  or  unknown  god,  my  sins  are  seven  times  seven,  forgive  me  my 

sins. 
Known  or  unknown  goddess,  my  sins  are  seven  times  seven,  forgive  me 

my  sins. 
Forgive  me  my  sins  and  I  will  humble  myself  before  thee. 
May  thy  heart  be  glad1  as  the  heart  of  the  mother  that  has  given  birth, 
May  thy  heart  be  glad  as  that  of  a  mother  who  has  given  birth,  as  that  of 

a  father  who  has  begotten  a  child. 

The  proportions  between  the  parts  taken  by  the  priest  and 
penitent  vary  considerably.  In  the  one  quoted,  the  priest  is 
only  incidentally  introduced ;  in  others,2  it  is  the  penitent  who 
plays  the  minor  part.  The  penitential  ritual  varied  accord- 
ingly ;  but  since  we  cannot  discover  here,  as  we  could  in  the 
case  of  the  incantation  texts,  the  special  occasions  for  the 
variations,  except  for  those  that  contain  historical  references, 
one  must  suppose  that  they  could  be  used  indifferently  at  the 
choice  of  the  penitent  or  the  priest.  It  is  probable  that  at  one 
time  a  large  collection  of  such  psalms  was  made  in  Babylonia, 
and  that  those  we  have  represent  compositions  made  from  the 
rituals  of  various  temples.  In  one  psalm  we  have  a  distinct 
statement  from  which  we  may  conclude  that  it  belonged  to  the 
E-sagila  temple  at  Babylon.  Only  a  portion  of  it  is  preserved.3 
It  is  interesting,  also,  because  of  a  reference  to  a  dream  that  it 
contains,  and  which  the  god  of  Babylon  is  called  upon  to  con- 
vert into  a  favorable  sign  for  the  petitioner.  Zimmern  is  of 
the  opinion  that  the  hymn  may  have  been  an  evening  prayer, 
but  it  seems  more  satisfactory  to  place  it  merely  in  the  general 
category  of  penitential  psalms,  with  a  request  for  a  sign  that 
the  deity  has  been  appeased.  The  sinner,  after  describing  his 
woeful  state,  — 

Instead  of  food,  I  eat  bitter  tears, 

Instead  of  date-wine,  I  drink  the  waters  of  misery, 

i  Be  pacified.  2  Eg.,  IVR.  6i.  *  lb.  59,  no.  2. 


PENITENTIAL   PSALMS.  323 

For  my  drink  I  have  bitter  waters, 

Instead  of  clothes,  I  am  enveloped  in  sin,1  — 

proceeds  to  a  fervent  appeal : 

O  my  god  who  art  angry  with  me,  accept  my  prayer, 
O  my  goddess  who  art  wroth  with  me,  accept  my  appeal, 
Accept  my  appeal,  may  thy  liver  be  at  rest ! 
My  lord  in  mercy  and  compassion  [look  upon  me?] 

Who  guides  the  span  of  life  against  the  encroachments  (?)  of  death,  accept 
my  prayer ! 

0  my  goddess,  look  upon  me,  accept  my  appeal; 

May  my  sins  be  forgiven,2  my  transgressions  be  wiped  out. 

May  the  ban  be  loosened,  the  chain  broken, 

May  the  seven  winds  carry  off  my  sighs. 

Let  me  tear  away  my  iniquity,  let  the  birds  carry  it  to  heaven, 

Let  the  fish  take  off  my  misfortune,  the  stream  carry  it  off. 

May  the  beasts  of  the  field  take  it  away  from  me, 

The  flowing  waters  of  the  stream  wash  me  clean. 

Let  me  be  pure  like  the  sheen  of  gold. 

As  a  ring  (?)  of  precious  stone,  may  I  be  precious  before  thee. 

Remove  my  iniquity,  save  my  soul. 

Thy  [temple]  court  I  will  watch,  thy  image  (?)  I  will  set  up.3 

Grant  to  me  that  I  may  see  a  favorable  dream, 

The  dream  that  I  see,  let  it  be  favorable, 

The  dream  that  I  see,  let  it  be  unfailing, 

The  dream  that  I  see,  turn  it  to  a  favorable  [issue]. 

The  god  Makhir  (?),  the  god  of  dreams  stand  at  my  head. 

Let  me  enter  into  E-sagila,  the  temple  of  the  gods,  the  house  of  life. 

Commend  me  to  Marduk,  the  merciful  one,  for  favor, 

1  will  be  subservient  to  thy  greatness,  I  will  exalt  thy  divinity. 

There  follows  a  line  from  which  one  may  further  conclude 
that    the    psalm    is    one    composed    for    the    royal    chief    of 

1  Delitzsch,  Assyr.  Worterbuch,  p.  37S.  In  another  psalm  the  penitent  says 
similarly,  "  Food  I  have  not  eaten,  weeping  is  my  nourishment,  water  I  have  not 
drunk,  tears  are  my  drink." 

2  Lit., '  released.'  The  underlying  metaphor  represents  the  individual  held  fast 
by  sin,  just  as  the  demons  seize  hold  of  a  man. 

3  A  somewhat  puzzling  line,  but  which  appears  to  convey  the  promise  on  the  part 
of  the  penitent  that  if  forgiven  he  will  observe  the  rites  demanded  by  the  deity. 


324  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Babylonia.      It   is  evidently  only  a  ruler  who   can   assure   the 
deity  that 

The  inhabitants  of  my  city,1  may  they  glorify  thy  power. 

We  know  from  the  historical  texts  that  previous  to  a  military 
engagement  the  kings  were  particularly  desirous  of  some  sign 
from  the  deity  that  might  serve  to  encourage  the  soldiery. 
Such  a  sign  was  ordinarily  a  dream.  The  circumstances, 
therefore,  seem  to  point  to  our  psalm  being  a  royal  prayer  for 
forgiveness  of  transgressions,  uttered  before  some  impending 
national  crisis,  in  the  hope  of  securing,  with  the  divine  pardon, 
the  protection  of  the  deity  who,  up  to  this  point  in  the  cam- 
paign, must  have  manifested  his  displeasure  rather  than  his 
favor.  More  distinct  references  to  national  events  are  found 
in  another  royal  penitential  psalm  : 2 

How  long,  O  my  mistress,  will  the  mighty  foe  oppress  thy  kind, 

In  thy  great  city  Erech  famine  has  settled, 

In  E-ulbar,  the  house  of  thy  oracle,  blood  is  poured  out  like  water, 

Throughout  thy  districts  he  has  kindled  conflagrations,  and  poured  [fire] 

over  them  in  columns  (?).3 
O  my  mistress,  I  am  abundantly  yoked  to  misfortune, 

0  my  mistress,  thou  hast  encompassed  me,  thou  hast  brought  me  into  pain, 
The  mighty  foe  has  trodden  me  down  as  a  reed, 

1  have  no  judgment,  I  have  no  wisdom, 

Like  a  '  dry  field  '  I  am  desolate  night  and  day, 

I  thy  servant  beseech  thee, 

May  thy  heart  be  at  rest,  thy  liver  be  pacified. 

At  times  specific  requests  are  inserted  into  these  hymns, 
such  as  release  from  physical  ills.  Sickness  being,  as  any 
other  evil,  due  to  divine  anger,  the  sick  man  combines  with  his 
prayer  for  forgiveness  of  the  sin  of  which  he  is  guilty,  the  hope 
that  his  disease,  viewed  as  the  result  of  his  sin,  may  be  removed. 

1  Babylon.  2  IVK  19,  no.  ;, ;    Zimmern.  no.  5. 

;i  Like  a  column.  The  metaphor  is  the  same  as  in  the  Biblical  phrase,  "column 
of  smoke." 


PENITENTIAL   PSALMS.  325 

A  hymn  addressed  to  Ishtar  of  Nineveh  by  Ashurnasirbal,  a 
king  of  Assyria,1  is  of  this  character.  It  begins  by  an  adora- 
tion of  the  goddess,  who  is  addressed  as 

The  producer,  the  queen  of  heaven,  the  glorious  lady, 

To  the  one  who  dwells  in  E-babbara  .  .  .  who  hath  spread  my  fame, 

To  the  queen  of  the  gods  to  whom  has  been  entrusted  the  commands  of 

the  great  gods, 
To  the  lady  of  Nineveh  .  . 

To  the  daughter  of  Sin,  the  twin-sister  of  Shamash,  ruling  over  all  kingdoms, 
Who  issues  decrees,  the  goddess  of  the  universe, 
To  the  lady  of  heaven  and  earth,  who  receives  prayer,  who  hearkens  to  the 

petition,  who  accepts  beseeching, 
To  the  merciful  goddess  who  loves  righteousness. 

The  king  calls  upon  Ishtar  to  listen  to  his  prayers  : 

Look  upon  me,  O  lady,  so  that  through  thy  turning  towards  me  the  heart 
of  thy  servant  may  become  strong. 

Ashurnasirbal  appeals  to  the  goddess  on  the  ground  of  what 
he  has  done  to  promote  the  glory  of  the  goddess  in  his  land. 
He  has  devoted  himself  to  the  service  of  the  goddess.  He  has 
observed  the  festivals  in  her  honor.  He  has  repaired  her 
shrines.  No  less  than  fourteen  images  of  the  goddess  were  set 
up  by  the  king.  Nay,  more,  he  claims  that  before  his  days 
Ishtar  was  not  properly  worshipped. 

I  was  without  understanding,  and  did  not  pray  to  thy  ladyship, 

The  people  of  Assyria  also  lacked  judgment,  and  did  not  approach  thy 

divinity; 
But  thou,  O  Ishtar,  mighty  weapon  of  the  great  gods, 
l!y  thy  grace'2  thou  didst  instruct  me,  and  didst  desire  me  to  rule. 

The  statement  that  the  Ishtar  cult  was  introduced  or  even 
reinstated  by  Ashurnasirbal  can  hardly  be  taken  literally  ;  but 

1  Published  by  Briinnow,  Zeits.  f.  Assyr.  v.  66  seq.  The  king  mentions  his 
father,  Shamshi-Ramman,  in  the  hymn.  If  this  is  Shamshi-Ramman  III.,  the  date 
of  the  hymn  would  be  c.  noo  B.C. 

2  Lit., '  lifting  up  of  thy  eyes.' 


326  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

it  distinctly  points  to  a  movement  in  the  clays  of  the  dynasty 
to  which  the  king  belonged,  that  brought  the  worship  of  the 
goddess  into  great  prominence. 

In  return  for  all  that  he  has  done  to  the  house  of  Ishtar, 
the  king  pleads  : 

I,  Ashurnasirbal,  full  of  affliction,  thy  worshipper, 

Who  takes  hold  of  thy  divine  staff, 

Who  prays  to  thy  sovereignty, 

Look  upon  me  and  let  me  appeal  to  thy  power ! 

May  thy  liver  be  appeased  for  that  which  has  aroused  thy  anger ; 

Let  thy  whole  heart  be  strong  towards  me. 

Make  my  disease  come  forth  and  remove  my  sin, 

Let  thy  mouth,  O  lady,  proclaim  forgiveness. 

The  priestly  vassal  who  worships  thee  without  change, 

Grant  him  mercy  and  cut  off  his  affliction. 

The  historical  references  found  in  the  penitential  psalms  are 
valuable  indications,  not  only  for  determining  the  age  of  these 
compositions,  but  for  ascertaining  the  occasions  on  which  they 
were  employed.  Neither  the  Babylonian  nor  the  Assyrian 
rulers  ever  reveal  to  us  in  their  official  annals  or  dispatches 
any  check  that  they  may  have  encountered  in  their  careers  or 
any  misfortune  that  may  have  occurred  to  them  or  to  the  state. 
These  psalms  tell  their  own  story.  They  point  to  seasons  of 
distress,  when  recourse  had  to  be  taken  to  appeals  to  the  gods, 
accompanied  by  the  confession  of  wrongs  committed.  As 
against  the  incantations  which  are  the  outcome  of  the  purely 
popular  spirit,  and  which  are  the  natural  expression  of  popular 
beliefs,  the  penitential  psalms  seem  to  represent  a  more  official 
method  of  appealing  to  the  gods.  The  advance  in  religious 
thought  which  these  productions  signal  may,  therefore,  be  due, 
in  part  at  least,  to  a  growing  importance  attached  to  the  relation- 
ship existing  between  the  gods  and  the  kingdom  as  a  whole,  as 
against  the  purely  private  pact  between  a  god  and  his  worship- 
pers.      The   use   of  these   psalms  by   Assyrian    rulers,   among 


PENITENTIAL   PSALMS.  327 

whom  the  idea  of  the  kingdom  assumes  a  greater  significance 
than  among  the  Babylonians,  points  in  this  direction.  It  is  sig- 
nificant, at  all  events,  that  such  psalms  were  also  produced  in 
Assyria  ;  and  while  they  are  entirely  modeled  upon  the  earlier 
Babylonian  specimens,  the  contribution  to  the  religious  litera- 
ture thus  made  in  the  north  must  be  regarded,  not  as  the 
outcome  of  the  extension  of  the  literary  spirit  prevailing  in 
Babylonia,  but  as  prompted  by  a  special  significance  attached 
to  the  penitential  ritual  in  removing  the  obstacles  to  the 
advancement  of  the  affairs  of  state. 

Despite,  therefore,  the  elevated  thought  and  diction  found 
in  these  psalms,  there  is  a  close  bond  existing  between  them 
and  the  next  branch  of  the  religious  literature  to  be  taken  up,  — 
the  oracles  and  omens,  which  similarly  stand  in  close  contact 
with  affairs  of  state,  and  to  which,  likewise,  additions,  and 
indeed,  considerable  additions,  to  the  stock  received  from 
Babylonia  were   made  by  the  Assyrian  literati. 


CHAPTER    XIX. 
ORACLES    AND   OMENS. 

A  strong  element  of  magic,  we  have  seen,  was  always  present 
in  the  hymns  and  prayers  of  the  Babylonians,  and  even  in  such 
as  contained  religious  sentiments  of  an  elevated  and  pure  char- 
acter. The  finest  prayer  has  almost  invariably  tacked  on  to  it 
an  incantation,  or  constitutes  in  itself  an  incantation.  Accom- 
panying the  prayer  were  offerings  to  the  deity  addressed,  or 
certain  symbolical  rites,  or  both,  and  the  efficacy  of  the  prayer 
was  supposed  to  reside  partly  in  the  accompanying  acts  and 
partly  in  the  mystic  power  of  the  words  of  the  prayer  as  such. 
In  large  measure  this  indissoluble  association  of  prayer  and 
incantation  is  clue  to  the  circumstance  that  both  Babylonians 
and  Assyrians  addressed  their  deities  only  when  something  was 
desired  of  the  latter,  —  the  warding  off  of  some  evil  or  the 
expectation  of  some  favor.  Even  in  the  penitential  psalms, 
that  merit  the  term  '  sublime,'  the  penitent  pours  out  his  soul  at 
the  shrine  of  grace  in  order  to  be  released  from  some  misfortune 
that  has  come  over  him  or  that  is  impending.  Mere  praise 
of  the  gods  without  any  ulterior  motive  finds  no  place  in  the 
Babylonian  or  Assyrian  ritual.  The  closest  approach  to  this 
religious  attitude  may  perhaps  be  seen  in  the  prayers  attached 
by  the  kings  to  their  commemorative  or  dedicatory  inscriptions. 
One  feels  that  the  rulers  are  impelled  to  do  this  from  a  certain 
sense  of  love  and  devotion  to  their  protecting  deities.  Nebu- 
chadnezzar's prayers  form  a  conspicuous  example  of  the  strength 
which  pure  love  and  attachment  to  the  gods  acquired  in  Baby- 
lonia; but  even  in  these  specimens,  a  request  of  some  kind - 
usually  for  long  life  and  prosperity    -is  made.     The  spirituali- 


ORACLES  AND    OMENS.  329 

zation  of  the  Babylonian  religion  has  in  this  way  most  definite 
limitations  imposed  upon  it.  There  is  a  point  beyond  which  it 
could  not  go  without  giving  rise  to  a  totally  changed  conception 
of  the  gods  and  their  relationship  to  men.  Prayer  in  its  higher 
form,  as  the  result  of  an  irresistible  prompting  of  the  emotions, 
without  any  other  purpose  than  the  longing  to  come  into  closer 
communion  with  a  superior  Power,  involves  such  a  change  in 
religious  conceptions,  and  hence  is  conspicuous  in  the  Babylo- 
nian ritual  by  its  absence. 

A  request  of  some  kind  being  thus  the  motive  that  lies 
behind  the  Babylonian  prayers,  it  follows  that  the  means 
taken  to  ascertain  the  will  or  intention  of  the  gods  with  regard 
to  that  request  formed  an  essential  feature  of  the  ritual.  Indeed, 
to  ascertain  the  will  of  a  deity  constituted  one  of  the  most 
important  functions  of  the  priest  —  perhaps  the  most  important 
function.  The  prayer  was  of  no  use  unless  it  was  answered, 
and  the  priest  alone  could  tell  whether  the  answer  was  afforded. 
The  efforts  of  the  priest  were  accordingly  directed  towards 
this  end  —  the  prognostication  of  the  future.  What  was  the 
intention  of  the  deity  ?  Would  the  hoped-for  deliverance  from 
evil  be  realized  ?  Would  the  demon  of  disease  leave  the  body  ? 
Would  the  symbolical  acts,  burning  of  effigies,  loosening  of  knots, 
and  the  like,  have  the  desired  effect  ?  Upon  the  success  of  the 
priest  in  performing  this  function  of  prognostication  everything 
depended,  both  for  himself  and  for  the  petitioner. 

The  natural  and  indeed  necessary  complement  to  the  priest 
as  exorciser  is  the  priest  as  the  forecaster  of  the  future. 
Since  no  one,  not  even  the  king,  could  approach  a  deity  directly, 
the  mediation  of  the  priest  was  needed  on  every  occasion  of  a 
religious  import.  The  ordinary  means  at  the  disposal  of  the 
priest  for  ascertaining  the  divine  will  or  caprice  were  twofold, 
—  directly  through  oracles  or  indirectly  by  means  of  omens 
derived  from  an  examination  of  the  sacrifices  offered.  A  com- 
plete  Babylonian   ritual  therefore  required,  besides  the  appeal 


330  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

made  by  the  petitioner  through  the  priests  or  with  their  assis- 
tance, an  incantation  introduced  in  some  form,  an  offering, 
certain  symbolical  acts  and  omens.  The  offerings  and  the 
symbolical  acts,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  appear  to  have  preceded1 
the  prayer  and  the  incantation,  but  in  the  prayers  they  are 
referred  to  again,  and  generally  just  before  the  interpretation 
of  the  omens.  The  omens  constituted  the  ulterior  end  in  view. 
Because  of  the  looked-for  omens  the  offering  was  brought,  the 
symbolical  acts  performed,  the  incantations  recited.  All  these 
rites  formed  the  preparation  for  the  grand  finale.  The  wor- 
shipper waited  anxiously  for  the  decision  of  the  priest.  Attached, 
therefore,  to  the  prayers  we  frequently  find  directions  intended 
for  the  priests  as  to  the  signs  to  which  his  attention  should  be 
directed,  certain  peculiarities  exhibited  in  parts  of  the  animal 
sacrificed  from  which  certain  conclusions  may  be  drawn.  The 
observation  of  these  signs  grows  to  the  dimensions  of  a  science 
equal  in  extent  to  the  observation  of  the  heavenly  bodies 
whose  movements,  as  indeed  the  whole  of  the  natural  world, 
were  supposed  to  exert  an  influence  over  the  fate  of  mankind. 
It  does  not  of  course  follow  that  in  the  case  of  every  prayer 
an  elaborate  ritual  was  observed.  Many  of  the  prayers  to  the 
gods  in  their  present  form  do  not  embody  omens,  as  indeed 
many  contain  no  reference  to  offerings  or  symbolical  acts. 
While  no  conclusion  can  be  drawn  from  this  circumstance, 
since  the  omission  may  be  due  to  the  point  of  view  from  which 
in  a  given  case  a  collection  of  prayers  was  made  by  the  priest, 
still  we  may  well  believe  that  for  the  exorcising  of  evil  spirits 
the  utterance  of  sacred  formulas  was  often  considered  quite 
sufficient.  In  the  earlier  stages  of  the  Babylonian  religion  the 
priest's  function  may  have  ended  when  he  had  exorcised  the 
demons  by  means  of  magic  words.  The  demons  were  forced  to 
yield.  If  they  nevertheless  held  out,  so  much  the  worse  for 
them  or--  for  the  priest,  who.  it  was  concluded,  must  have  lost 
1  See  King,  Babylonian  Magic,  p.  nxx. 


ORACLES  AND   OMENS.  331 

his  power  over  the  spirits  through  some  error  committed  by 
him.  The  resort  to  omens  has  wider  aspects,  as  will  presently 
be  shown,  than  the  connection  with  prayers  and  offerings,  and 
a  most  reasonable  view  is  that  omens  were  first  introduced 
into  prayers  on  occasions  when  a  worshipper  wished  to 
ascertain  the  will  of  a  deity  for  a  certain  purpose,  and 
to  regulate  his  own  conduct  accordingly.  In  petitioning  the 
deity  a  sacrifice  was  naturally  offered.  Through  the  sacrifice, 
which  was  rendered  acceptable  to  the  deity  by  the  mediation 
of  the  priest,  the  desired  answer  to  a  question  was  obtained. 
From  being  resorted  to  in  such  instances,  omens  would 
naturally  come  to  form  part  of  the  ritual  for  almost  any  occa- 
sion when  a  deity  was  appealed  to,  both  in  connection  with 
incantations  and  symbolical  acts  when  the  omens  would  form  a 
supplement  to  the  magic  element  in  the  ritual,  as  well  as  in 
cases  where  no  specific  incantations  are  introduced.  In  both 
cases  the  omens  would  constitute  the  means  resorted  to  for 
ascertaining  whether  the  petitioner  might  look  for  a  favorable 
reply  to  a  request  proffered  or,  in  a  more  general  way,  find  out 
anything  that  it  may  be  important  for  him  to  know.  The  occa- 
sions for  consulting  the  deity  would  be  of  a  public  or  private 
character.  How  far  it  became  customary  for  the  general  public 
to  secure  the  mediation  of  a  priest  for  securing  aid  from  the 
gods  in  matters  appertaining  to  personal  welfare  we  have  no 
means  of  definitely  determining.  We  find,  for  example,  a  son 
consulting  an  oracle  on  behalf  of  his  father  in  order  to  ascer- 
tain what  day  would  be  favorable  for  undertaking  some  building 
operation,1  and  he  receives  the  answer  that  the  fourth  of  the 
month  will  be  propitious;  and  so  there  are  other  occasions  on 
which  private  individuals  consult  the  priests,  but  in  general  it 
was  only  on  occasions  of  real  distress  that  an  individual  would 
come  to  the  sanctuary,  —  to  seek  relief  from  bodily  ills,  to  ward 
off  blows  of  adversity,  to  pacify  a  deity  who  has  manifested  his 

1  Harper's  Assyrian  Letters,  no.  219. 


332  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

or  her  displeasure.  The  expense  involved — for  the  worshipper 
was  not  to  appear  empty-handed — would  of  itself  act  as  a 
deterrent  against  too  frequent  visits  to  a  sanctuary. 

The   public   welfare   occupied   a  much   larger  share  in  the 
Babylonian  worship.    In  order  to  ensure  the  safety  of  the  state, 
occasions  constantly  arose  when  the  deities  had  to  be  consulted, 
It  is  no  accident  that  so  many  of  the  prayers  —  the  hymns  and 
psalms  —  contain  references  to  kings  and  to  events  that  tran- 
spired during  their  reigns.     In  these  references  the  occasions 
for    the    prayers    are    to    be    sought.     Remarkable   as    is   the 
expression  which  the  consciousness  of    individual   guilt  finds 
in  the  religious  literature  of  Babylonia,  the  anger  of  the  deity 
against  his  land  is  much  more  prominently  dwelt  upon  than  the 
manifestation  of  his  wrath  towards  an  individual.      It  could  not 
be  otherwise,  since  the  welfare  of  the  state  conditioned  to  so 
large  an  extent  the  happiness  of  the  individual.     The  startling 
phenomena  of  nature,  such  as   an   eclipse,   a  flood,  a  storm, 
while  affecting  individuals  were  not  aimed  directly  at  them,  but 
at  the  country  viewed  as  the  domain  of  a  certain  god  or  of  cer- 
tain gods.    Blighted  crops,  famine,  and  pestilence  had  likewise  a 
public  as  well  as  a  private  aspect.     On  all  such  occasions  the 
rulers  would  proceed  to  the  sanctuaries  in  order,  with  the  assis- 
tance of  the  priests,  to  pacify  the  angered  god.     It  was  not 
sufficient  at  such  times  to  pronounce  sacred  formulas,  to  make 
fervent  appeals,  but  some  assurances  had  to  be  given  that  the 
words  and  the  symbolical  acts  would  have  the  desired  effect. 
Omens  were  sought  for  from  the  animals  offered.     There  were 
other    occasions    besides    those  stated,  when    for  the    sake  of 
the    public    welfare    oracles  were    sought    at   the    sanctuaries. 
If  a  public  improvement  was   to  be  undertaken,  such  as  the 
building  of    a  palace,  or  of    a  temple,   of  a  canal,   or  a  clam, 
it  was  of  the  utmost  importance  to  know  whether  the  enterprise 
was  acceptable  to  the  deity.      A  day  had  to  be  carefully  chosen 
for  laying  the  foundations,  when   the  god  would  lie  favorably 


ORACLES  AND    OMENS.  333 

disposed  towards  his  subjects,  —  the  kings  under  whose  auspices 
such  work  was  carried  on.  Similar  precautions  had  to  be 
taken  to  select  a  favorable  day  for  the  dedication.  This  again 
was  determined  by  means  of  omens  either  derived  from  offerings 
or  in  some  other  way.  The  Babylonians  and  Assyrians  believed, 
as  did  the  Jews  upon  their  return  from  the  Babylonian  exile,  that 
'  unless  the  lord  assists,  the  builders  work  in  vain.'  When  we 
come  to  military  campaigns  where  the  individual  disappears 
altogether  in  the  presence  of  the  majestic  figure  of  the  state, 
the  will  and  disposition  of  the  gods  had  to  be  consulted  at  every 
step,  —  regarding  the  plans  of  the  enemy,  at  the  enemy's 
approach,  before  the  battle,  in  the  midst  of  the  fray,  and  at  its 
termination. 

The  frequency  with  which  the  gods  were  approached  in  the 
interests  of  the  state  and  the  public  weal,  plied  with  questions 
upon  which  the  fate  of  the  land  depended,  is  shown  by  the 
stereotyped  form  which  such  official  solicitations  in  the  course 
of  time  acquired.  Dating  from  the  reigns  of  Esarhaddon  and 
Ashurbanabal  we  have  an  elaborate  series  of  prayers  addressed 
to  the  sun-god,  all  dealing  with  questions  of  a  political  import. 
These  prayers,  so  admirably  edited  and  analyzed  by  Knudtzon,1 
are  all  arranged  according  to  a  single  pattern.  Each  one  opens 
with  a  question  or  series  of  questions  which  Shamash,  the  sun- 
god,  is  asked  to  answer.  The  god  is  then  implored  not  to 
be  angry,  but  to  lend  his  aid  against  any  errors  unwittingly 
committed  in  the  sacrificial  rites.  For  a  second  time  the  same 
question  is  put  in  a  somewhat  varying  form.  Another  appeal 
is  made,  and  the  various  omens  derived  from  the  inspection  of 
animals  are  interpreted  as  a  guide  to  the  priests.  According  to 
the  application  of  these  omens  to  the  sacrifice  before  the  priest, 
a  decision  is  rendered.  It  will  be  sufficient  for  our  purposes  to 
present  a  single  specimen  of  such  a  fixed  ritual." 

1  Assyrischc  Gebete  an  den  Sonnengott  fiir  Staat  tind Konigliches  Hans  (Leipzig, 
1893,  2  vols.).  '2  Knudtzon,  no.  1. 


334  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

"  Esarhaddon,  being  hard  pressed  by  a  group  of  nations  to  the 
northeast  of  Assyria,  led  by  a  certain  Kashtariti,  and  among 
whose  followers  the  Gimirrites,  the  Medes,  and  Manneans  are 
the  most  prominent,  asks  for  an  oracle  from  Shamash  as  to  the 
outcome  of  the  situation.  The  priest,  acting  as  mediator, 
addresses1  the  god: 

O  Shamash  !  great  lord  !     As  I  ask  thee,  do  thou  in  true  mercy  answer 


me. 


From  this  day,  the  3d  day  of  this  month  of  Iyar2  to  the  nth  day  of 
the  month  of  Ab3  of  this  year,  a  period  of  one  hundred  days  and  one  hun- 
dred nights  is  the  proscribed  term  for  the  priestly  activity.4 

Will  within  this  period,  Kashtariti,  together  with  his  soldiery,  will  the 
army  of  the  Gimirrites,  the  army  of  the  Medes,  will  the  army  of  the  Man- 
neans, or  will  any  enemy  whatsoever  succeed  in  carrying  out  their  plan, 
whether  by  strategy  (?)  or  by  main  force,  whether  by  the  force  of  weapons 
of  war  and  fight  or  by  the  ax,  whether  by  a  breach  made  with  machines  of 
war  and  battering  rams5  or  by  hunger,  whether  by  the  power  residing  in  the 
name  of  a  god  or  goddess,0  whether  in  a  friendly  way  or  by  friendly  gran,7 
or  by  any  strategic  device,  will  these  aforementioned,  as  many  as  are 
required  to  take  a  city,  actually  capture  the  city  Kishsassu,  penetrate  into 
the  interior  of  that  same  city  Kishsassu,  will  their  hands  lay  hold  of  that 
same  city  Kishsassu,  so  that  it  falls  into  their  power?  Thy  great  divine 
power  knows  it.8 

The  capture  of  that  same  city,  Kishsassu,  through  any  enemy  whatso- 
ever, within  the  specified  period,  is  it  definitely  ordained  by  thy  greal  and 
divine  will,  0  Shamash  !      Will  it  actually  come  to  pass?9 

1  That  the  priest  recites  the  prayer  and  not  the  king  is  shown  by  the  frequent 
introduction  of  the  king's  name  in  the  3d  person.     See,  e.g.,  Knudtzon,  nos.  40-47. 

2  2d  month. 
8  5th  month. 

4  I.c,  the  priest  is  only  asked  for  an  oracle  regarding  the  events  of  the  next  one 
hundred  days. 

5  Various  machines  are  mentioned.  The  precise  meaning  of  the  technical  terms 
employed  is  not  known. 

6  P.y  invoking  the  assistance  of  the  gods. 

"  Peacefully,  by  mutual  agreement  and  the  promise  of  favors. 

8  One  is  reminded  of  the  Arabic  phrase,  "  Allah  alone  knows  it,"  so  frequently  intro- 
duced in  Mohammedan  writings. 

9  Lit., 'Seen  will  it  be  seen,  heard  will  it  be  heard?'  The  emphatic  construction 
is  identical  with  the  one  frequently  employed  in  Biblical  Hebrew. 


ORACLES  AND    OMEArS.  335 

It  will  be  observed  that,  much  as  in  a  legal  document,  all 
contingencies  are  enumerated.  In  other  prayers,  still  more  are 
mentioned.  A  definite  answer  is  required,  and  care  is  taken 
not  to  leave  any  loophole  open  by  means  of  which  the  deity 
may  escape  from  the  obligation  imposed  upon  him  to  manifest 
his  intention.  Shamash  might  answer  that  the  city  will  not  be 
captured,  with  the  mental  reservation  that  it  will  surrender,  or 
he  might  throw  Esarhaddon  off  his  guard  by  announcing  that 
"  not  by  might  nor  by  strength  "  will  the  city  be  taken,  and  the 
king  may  be  surprised  some  morning  to  learn  that  the  catastro- 
phe has  been  brought  about  through  the  power  residing  in  the 
'word.'  These  precautions  were  taken,  not  so  much  because 
it  was  supposed  that  the  gods  and  priests  were  tricky,  but 
because  all  conditions  had  to  be  carefully  fulfilled  in  order  to 
ensure  an  answer,  and,  if  at  all  possible,  of  course  a  favorable 
answer.  To  the  same  end,  great  care  had  to  be  taken  that  in 
the  preparation  of  the  offering  which  accompanied  the  prayer 
no  mistake  should  be  made.  The  sacrificial  animal  —  in  the 
case  before  us  a  lamb  —  had  to  be  guarded  against  all  imper- 
fections, impurities,  and  contaminations.  The  priest  had  to  be 
careful  to  put  on  the  proper  dress,  to  speak  the  proper  words, 
and  to  be  himself  free  from  any  ritualistic  impurity.  Before 
proceeding  to  the  inspection  of  the  animal,  in  order  to  forecast 
the  future,  the  priest  had  to  take  care  that  nothing  might  happen 
to  interfere  with  the  proper  observation  of  the  rites.  This  sec- 
tion of  the  prayer  is  characterized  by  the  word  "ezifr"  repeated 
at  the  beginning  of  every  line,  and  which  conveys  the  appeal 
that  what  follows  may  be  precluded  from  happening.1  The 
priest  first  prays  to  Shamash  : 

Preclude  that  after  the  specified  period  [the  catastrophe  may  not  come  to 
pass], 

1  Knudtzon  (p.  25)  did  not  grasp  the  negative  force  of  ezib.  The  word  is  a 
request  that  something  might  not  happen. 


336  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

Preclude   whatever  they   [i.e.,  the  enemies]   may  plan   may  not  be  carried 

out  (?), 
Preclude  them  from  making  a  slaughter  and  from  plundering.  .  .  . 
Whether  the  decision  of  this  day  be  good  or  bad,  ward  off  a  stormy  day 

with  pouring  rain. 

This  last  phrase,  which  is  somewhat  obscure,  seems  to  be  a 
request  made  in  the  contingency  of  an  unfavorable  omen  being 
received.  The  sun-god  is  asked,  at  all  events,  not  to  hide  his 
countenance  under  clouds  and  rain  on  the  decisive  clay  of  battle. 
Coming  after  these  preliminary  requests  to  the  sacrifice,  the 
priest  continues: 

Prevent  anything  unclean  from  defiling  the  place  of  inspection,1 

Prevent  the   lamb  of  thy  divinity,   which  is  to  be  inspected,  from  being 

imperfect  and  unfit. 
(Juard  him  who  takes  hold  of  the  body  of  the  lamb,  who  is  clothed  in  the 

proper  sacrificial  dress,  from  having  eaten,  drunk,  or  handled  anything 

unclean. 
Make  his  hand  firm  (?),  guard  the  seer,  thy  servant,  from  speaking  a  word 

hastily.2 

The  priest  thereupon  repeats  his  question  to  the  sun-god  : 

I  ask  thee,  O  Shamash  !  great  lord!  whether  from  the  3d  clay  of  this 
month  of  lyar,  up  to  the  nth  day  of  the  month  of  Ab  of  this  year,  Kash- 
tariti,  with  his  soldiers,  whether  the  Gimirrites,  the  Manneans,  the  Medes, 
or  whether  any  enemy  whatsoever  will  take  the  said  city,  Kishsassu,  enter 
that  said  city,  Kishsassu,  seize  said  city,  Kishsassu,  with  their  hands,  obtain 
it  in  their  power. 

The  various  terms  used  in  describing  the  taking  of  a  city  are 
once  more  specified,  so  as  to  fulfill  all  the  demands  of  delinite- 
ness  in  the  question. 

1  Where  the  animal  is  to  lie  inspected,  probably  the  altar  itself. 

2  In  the  Jewish  ritual  ami  many  others,  stress  is  laid  upon  pronouncing  the  words 
of  a  prayer  clearly  and  deliberately,  especially  such  words  as  have  a  particularly 
sacred  value. 


ORACLES  AND    OMENS.  337 

The  priest  is  now  ready  to  proceed  with  an  examination  of 
the  animal  before  him.  A  varying  list  of  omens  are  introduced 
into  the  prayers  under  consideration.  That  they  are  so  intro- 
duced is  a  proof  of  the  official  character  of  these  texts.  The 
omens  were  not,  of  course,  intended  to  be  recited.  They  are 
enumerated  as  a  guide  to  the  priests.  The  various  signs  that 
may  be  looked  for  are  noted,  and  according  to  what  the  priest 
finds  he  renders  his  decision.  Knudtzon  has  made  the  obser- 
vation l  that  in  the  prayers  published  by  him,  the  signs  found 
on  the  animal  are  noted  but  not  interpreted.  This  rather  curi- 
ous omission  is  again  naturally  accounted  for  on  the  assumption 
that  these  prayers  in  their  present  form  are  part  of  a  ritual  com- 
piled solely  for  the  benefit  of  priests  attached  to  a  Shamash 
sanctuary.  Full  directions  were  not  required.  All  that  the 
priest  needed  was  to  know  what  to  look  for.  For  the  rest,  he 
depended  upon  tradition  or  his  own  knowledge  or  judgment. 
The  omens  themselves,  or  rather  the  signs,  refer  to  the  condi- 
tion in  which  certain  parts  of  the  animal  are  found  or  to 
peculiarities  in  the  composition  of  the  animal. 

The  priest  is  instructed  to  observe  whether  '  at  the  nape  on 
the  left  side  '  there  is  a  slit;  whether  '  at  the  bottom  on  the  left 
side  of  the  bladder '  some  peculiarity  2  is  found  or  whether  it  is 
normal ;  whether  'the  nape  to  the  right  side'  is  sunk  and  split  or 
whether  the  viscera  are  sound.  The  proportions,  too,  in  the  size 
of  the  various  parts  of  the  body  appear  to  have  been  of  moment ; 
and  in  this  way,  a  large  number  of  points  are  given  to  which  the 
priest  is  to  direct  his  attention.  From  a  combination  of  all  pecu- 
liarities and  signs  in  a  given  instance,  he  divines  the  disposition 
of  the  god  addressed,  whether  it  is  favorable  or  not.  The  whole 
ceremony  is  brought  to  a  close  by  another  appeal  to  the  god  to 
send  an  answer  to  the  question  put  to  him.     The  priest  prays  : 

1  Assyrische  Gcbcfe,  p.  50. 

2  Exactly  of  what  nature  cannot  be  ascertained.  The  text  (Knudtzon,  no.  29,  rev. 
15)  is  defective  at  this  point. 


33S  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

By  virtue  of  this  sacrificial  lamb,  arise  and  grant  true  mercy,  favorable 
conditions  of  the  parts  of  the  animal,  a  declaration  favorable  and  beneficial 
be  ordained  by  thy  great  divinity.  Grant  that  this  may  come  to  pass.  To 
thy  great  divinity,  O  Shamash  !  great  lord  !  may  it 1  be  pleasing,2  and  may 
an  oracle  be  sent  in  answer! 

In  some  of  the  prayers  a  second  series  of  omen  indications 
are  given.  What  the  oracle  announced  we  are,  of  course,  not 
told.     The  ritual  is  not  concerned  with  results. 

From  the  analysis  just  given  it  will  be  seen  that  the  consul- 
tation of  a  deity  was  often  entailed  with  much  ceremony.  No 
doubt  the  priests  did  all  in  their  power  to  add  to  the  solemnity 
of  such  an  occasion.  The  kings  on  their  side  showed  their 
lavishness  in  furnishing  victims  for  the  sacrifice.  Again  and 
again  does  Esarhaddon  solicit  Shamash  to  reveal  the  outcome 
of  the  military  campaigns  in  which  the  king  was  engaged.  The 
same  individual,  Kashtariti,  and  the  Gimirrites,  Medes,  etc.,  are 
mentioned  in  many  other  prayers  prepared  in  the  course  of  the 
campaign ;  and  elsewhere  other  campaigns  are  introduced.  What 
Esarhaddon  did,  no  doubt  his  successors  also  did,  as  he  himself 
followed  the  example  set  by  his  predecessors.  We  are  justified, 
then,  in  concluding  that  a  regular  '  oracle  and  omen  ritual '  was 
developed  in  Babylonia  and  Assyria — how  early  it  is  of  course 
impossible  to  say.  There  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  in 
some  form  such  a  ritual  existed  in  Babylonia  before  the  rise  of 
Assyria,  but  it  is  also  evident  that  in  a  military  empire  like 
Assyria,  there  would  be  more  frequent  occasion  for  securing 
oracles  than  in  Babylonia.  The  ritual  may  therefore  have  been 
carried  to  a  greater  degree  of  perfection  in  the  north.  The 
Assyrian  conquerors,  if  we  may  judge  from  examples,  were  fond 
of  asking  for  an  oracle  at  every  turn  in  the  political  situation. 
The  king  intends  to  send  an  official  to  a  foreign  land,  but  he  is 
uncertain  as  to  the  wisdom  of  his  decision.     Accordingly,  he 

1  The  prayer  or  the  lamb. 

2  Lit., '  proceed.' 


ORACLES  AND   OMENS.  339 

puts  the  case  before  the  god.     If  this  decision  is  taken,  he 
asks,  Will  the  envoy  carry  out  the  orders  of  the  king? 

Thy  great  divinity  knows  it. 

Is  it  commanded  and  ordained  by  thy  great  divinity, 

O  Shamash  ?     Is  it  to  come  to  pass  ? x 

In  a  similar  way,  questions  are  asked  with  reference  to  the 
course  of  a  campaign.  Will  the  Assyrian  king  encounter  the 
king  of  Ethiopia,  and  will  the  latter  give  battle  ?  Will  the  king 
return  alive  from  the  campaign  ?  is  a  question  frequently  asked. 
Even  for  their  quasi-private  affairs,  the  kings  sought  for  an 
oracle.  Before  giving  his  daughter  in  marriage  to  a  foreign 
potentate,  Esarhaddon  desires  to  know  whether  the  one  seek- 
ing this  favor,  Bartatua,  the  king  of  Ishkuza,2 

is  to  be  trusted,  will  he  fulfill  his  promises,  will  he  observe  the  decrees  of 
Esarhaddon,  the  king  of  Assyria,  and  execute  them  in  good  faith  ? 

Again,  when  the  king  is  about  to  associate  his  son  with  him- 
self in  the  government,  he  first  inquires  whether  this  is  agreeable 
to  the  deity.3  The  king  fears  lest  his  son  may  cause  trouble, 
may  provoke  dissensions.  Past  experience  prompts  him  to  be 
careful  before  following  his  inclination. 

Is  the  entrance  of  Siniddinabal,  the  son  of  Esarhaddon,  the  king  of 
Assyria,  whose  name  is  written  on  this  tablet,  into  the  government  in  accord 
with  the  command  of  thy  great  divinity  ?     Is  it  to  come  to  pass  ? 

The  reference  to  the  writing  of  the  name  is  interesting.  It 
would  appear  that  the  question  is  actually  written  by  the  priest 
and  placed  before  the  deity.  The  Greeks  similarly  put  their 
questions  to  the  Delphian  oracle  in  writing.  May  it  be  that 
among  the  Babylonians  the  answer  of  the  god  was  at  times  also 

1  Knudtzon,  no.  66.  Other  examples  are  furnished  in  George  Smith's  History  of 
Askurbanabal,  pp.  184,  185. 

2  A  district  to  the  northeast  of  Assyria ;  Knudtzon,  no.  29. 

3  lb.  no.  107. 


340  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

handed  down  on  a  tablet,  as  the  Greek  and  Roman  oracles  were 
communicated  in  writing  on  the  leaves  of  a  tree  ? 

If  sickness  entered  the  royal  house,  an  oracle  was  likewise 
sought.  The  king  is  sick.  Is  it  ordained  that  he  will  recover? 
We  are  told  in  one  case  that " 

Nika,  the  mother  of  Esarhaddon,  the  king  of  Assyria,  is  sick.  She 
sees  the  hand  of  the  goddess  Nana  of  Uruk  laid  heavily  upon  her.  ...  Is 
it  ordained  that  this  hand  will  be  lifted  off  from  the  sufferer  ? 

The  occasions,  it  is  evident,  were  exceedingly  numerous  when 
the  Assyrian  rulers  appealed  to  the  priests  for  oracles.  Natu- 
rally, this  appeal  was  not  in  all  cases  made  with  the  elaborate 
formality  illustrated  by  Esarhaddon's  petitions  to  Shamash.  At 
times  the  monarch,  as  the  individual,  would  content  himself 
with  sending  to  the  priest  for  an  answer  to  a  question,  and  the 
priest  would  reply  in  an  equally  simple  and  direct  manner. 
Quite  a  number  of  such  messages,  sent  by  priests  to  their  mas- 
ter, are  included  in  the  valuable  publication  of 'Assyrian  Letters,' 
begun  by  Professor  R.  F.  Harper.2  The  king's  son  wishes  to 
set  out  on  a  journey.  The  father  sends  to  the  astrologers 
Balasi  and  Nabu-akheirba,   and  receives  the  reply:3 

As  for  Ashur-mukinpalea,  about  whom  the  king,  our  lord,  has  sent  to 
us,  may  Ashur,  Bel,  Nabu,  Sin,  Shamash,  and  Ramman  bless  him.  May 
the  king,  our  lord,  witness  his  welfare  (?).  Conditions  are  favorable  for 
the  journey.     The  second  day  is  favorable,  the  fourth  day  very  favorable. 

Similarly,  the  astrologers  send  reports  regarding  the  appear- 
ance and  position  of  the  moon  and  the  stars,  and  of  various 
phenomena  that  had  to  be  taken  into  account  in  moments 
where  decisive  action  had  to  be  taken. 

1  //■.  no.  101. 

2  Four  volumes  comprising  several  hundred  letters  have  already  appeared  under 
the  title,  Assyrian  Letters  of  the  K.  Collection  (London,  1896).  For  a  good  summary 
of  the  character  of  the  Assyrian  epistolary  literature,  see  Johnston's  article  in  the 
Journal  of  the  American  Oriental  Society,  xviii.  1,  pp.  125-134. 

3  Harper,  no.  yj. 


ORACLES  AND    OMENS.  341 

Before  leaving  the  subject,  it  may  be  of  interest  to  point  out 
that  among  the  literary  remains  of  the  Assyrian  period  there 
are  "  blank  formulas  "  for  oracles,  the  names  in  each  instance 
to  be  filled  out  by  the  officiating  priest.  Such  formulas  were 
prepared,  no  doubt,  for  cases  of  common  occurrence.  Thus 
Esarhaddon,  before  appointing  a  person  to  a  responsible  posi- 
tion, took  the  precaution  of  ascertaining  from  some  deity 
whether  the  appointment  was  a  wise  one.  The  name  of  the 
individual  being  written  down,  the  priest  asks  the  deity  in  a 
general  way : l 

Will  the  man  whose  name  appears  on  this  tablet,  and  whom  he  [the 
king]  is  about  to  appoint  to  such  and  such  a  position,  keep  good  faith,  or 
will  he  manifest  hostility  towards  the  king,  inciting  to  rebellion  ? 

Esarhaddon  may  have  had  a  special  reason  for  using  precau- 
tions against  his  officials,  and  even  his  sons.  He  came  to  the 
throne  during  a  rebellion  which  involved  the  assassination 
of  his  father.  Esarhaddon's  own  brothers  were  the  murderers. 
We  may  well  suppose  that  he  trembled  at  every  step  he  took, 
but  his  position  is  after  all  characteristic  of  the  Assyrian  rulers 
in  general,  many  of  whom  came  to  the  throne  by  violence  and 
maintained  themselves  through  force. 

Other  texts  enable  us  to  study  the  form  of  the  oracles  them- 
selves. As  yet,  no  oracle  texts  have  been  found  belonging  to 
the  older  Babylonian  period,  but  we  have  again  every  reason 
to  believe  that  what  holds  good  for  the  days  of  Assyrian  power 
applies  to  a  much  earlier  period,  though  at  the  same  time  the 
greater  frequency  with  which  Assyrian  rulers  were  wont  to  ply 
their  gods  with  questions  would  increase  the  number  of  those 
whose  special  business  it  was  to  pronounce  the  oracles.  The 
manifold  duties  of  the  priesthood  would  tend  towards  a  differ- 
entiation of  the  priests  into  various  classes.  The  priest,  as 
exorciser,  would  become  distinct  from  the  priest  as  the  inspector 

1  E.g.,  Knudtzon,  no.  124. 


342  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

of  omens,  and  the  latter  different  again  from  the  pronouncer  of 
oracles.  From  the  fact  that  Marduk  was  regarded  as  the 
special  god  of  oracles  by  the  Assyrians  as  well  as  the  Babylo- 
nians,1 we  may  conclude  that  this  differentiation  of  the  priestly 
classes  took  place  already  in  the  south,  or  at  all  events  that 
oracle-giving  as  a  distinct  priestly  function  was  recognized  in 
Babylonia  and  carried  over  to  the  northern  empire.  If  we  may 
draw  a  general  conclusion  from  the  state  of  affairs  in  Esarhad- 
don's  days,  this  function  was  largely  in  the  hands  of  women. 
We  know  from  other  evidence  that  women  were  attached  to  the 
temple  service  from  ancient  times.2  As  sorceresses,  too,  they 
occupied  a  quasi-priestly  position,  since  their  help  could  be 
invoked  in  driving  evil  spirits  into  the  person  of  one's  enemy. 
The  oracle-giver  and  the  sorcerer  or  sorceress  are  correlated 
personages  in  religion.  For  various  reasons  —  in  part,  perhaps, 
because  of  her  physical  differences  from  man  —  woman  was 
invested  with  a  certain  mystery  by  ancient  nations.3  Hence  the 
fact  that  among  so  many  nations  witchcraft  is  associated  with 
woman,  and  similarly  among  many  nations  women  perform  the 
functions  of  the  oracle.  In  a  series  of  eight  oracles  addressed 
to  Esarhaddon,4  six  are  given  forth  by  women.  These  oracles, 
it  so  happens,  all  issue  from  the  goddess  Ishtar  of  Arbela.  The 
cult  of  this  goddess  at  Arbela  stood  in  high  favor  in  the  eighth 
century  B.C.  An  influential  body  of  priests  congregated  there, 
and  the  eight  oracles  in  question  appear  to  be  a  part  of  a  more 
extensive  collection  made  by  the  theologians  of  Arbela,  of  whose 
intellectual  activity  there  are  other  traces.  Arbela  appears  to 
have  developed  a  special  school  of  theology,  marked  by  the  at- 
tempt to  accord  a  superior  position  to  the  great  goddess  Ishtar. 

i  Zimmern,  Busspsalmen,  p.  32.  The  popularity  of  the  sun-cult  in  Assyria  in 
connection  with  omens  and  oracles  is  probably  due  also  in  part  to  the  influence  of 
Marduk,  who  was.  as  we  have  seen,  a  solar  deity. 

-  Lehman,  Samassumukin,  p.  42. 

B  Sec  Ploss,  Das  Weib,  pp.  594-606;  also  above,  p.  267. 

i  IVR.pl.'.  1. 


ORACLES  AND    OMENS.  343 

The  one  who  pronounces  the  oracle  speaks  on  behalf  of 
Ishtar,  and  therefore  employs  the  first  person.  The  oracles  all 
have  reference  to  political  events.  They  cannot,  of  course,  be 
the  answers  to  the  questions  asked  in  the  prayers  analyzed 
above,  since  these  were  addressed  to  the  sun-god;  but  we  may 
feel  certain  that  the  oracles  of  the  Shamash  priests  or  priest- 
esses were  much  of  the  same  order,  varying  only  in  minor 
particulars.  The  goddess  invariably  encourages  the  king. 
The  priest,  it  would  appear,  hears  the  voice  of  the  deity  in 
the  wind. 

Fear  not !     The  wind  which  speaks  to  thee  — 

Comes  with  speech  from  me,  withholding  nothing.1 

Thine  enemies,  like  the   ...   of  Siwan,2 

At  thy  feet  will  be  poured  out. 

The  great  mistress  am  I. 

I  am  Ishtar  of  Arbela,  who  forces  thine  enemies  to  submission. 

Is  there  any  utterance  of  mine  that   I  addressed  to  thee  upon  which  thou 

couldst  not  rely  ? 
I  am  Ishtar  of  Arbela. 

Thine  enemies,  the  Ukkites  (?),  I  give  to  thee,  even  I,  Ishtar  of  Arbela. 
In  front  and  behind  thee  I  march. 
Fear  not ! 

This  oracle,  we  are  told  in  the  subscript,  was  pronounced  by 
a  certain  Ishtar-la-tashiat,  a  son  [/>.,  a  native]  of  Arbela.  The 
dignity  of  the  diction  is  very  marked.  The  very  frequent  assur- 
ance f  fear  not '  and  the  solemn  repetition  of  '  I  am  Ishtar  '  lend 
impressiveness  to  the  message.  The  oracle,  it  will  be  seen, 
deals  in  general  phrases.  This  indefiniteness  characterizes 
most  of  them ;  and  the  more  impressive  the  diction,  the  greater 
vagueness  in  the  statements  made.  So  an  oracle,  coining  from 
Ishtar  and  Nabu  and  uttered  by  a  woman  Baya,  a  native  of 
Arbela,  announces  : 

1  I.e.,  Ishtar  sends  the  wind  with  a  clear  message. 

2  3d  month. 


344  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Fear  not,  Esavh addon, 

I,  the  lord,  to  thee  do  I  speak. 

The  beams  of  thy  heart  I  strengthen  as  thy  mother,1 

Who  gave  thee  life. 

Sixty  great  gods  are  with  me2 

Drawn  up  to  protect  thee. 

The  god  Sin  is  on  thy  right,  Shamash  on  thy  left. 

Sixty  great  gods  are  round  about  thee 

Drawn  up  in  battle  array  in  the  center  of  the  citadel. 

On  men  do  not  rely. 

Lift  up  thine  eyes  to  me.     Look  up  to  me  ! 

I  am  Ishtar  of  Arbela. 

Ashur  is  gracious  to  thee. 

Thy  weakness  I  will  change  to  strength  (?). 

Fear  not !  glorify  me  ! 

Is  not  the  enemy  subdued 

Who  has  been  handed  over  to  thee? 

I  proclaim  it  aloud, 

What  has  been  will  be.3 

I  am  Nabu,  the  lord  of  the  writing  tablet, 

Glorify  me. 

A  message  of  this  kind  could  hardly  have  been  satisfactory 
except  as  a  general  encouragement. 

The  popularity  of  the  Nabu  cult  in  Assyria,  it  will  be  recalled, 
is  an  offset  against  the  supremacy  of  Marduk  in  the  south.  The 
Assyrian  kings  found  it  to  their  interest  to  incorporate  as  much 
of  the  Babylonian  cult  as  was  possible  into  their  own  religious 
ritual.  To  Shamash  they  assigned  the  role  played  by  Marduk. 
There  was  no  danger  in  paying  homage  to  Nabu,  the  son  of 
Marduk.  Ishtar  they  regarded  as  their  own  goddess  quite  as 
much  as  Ashur.  These  four  deities,  therefore,  Ishtar,  Shamash, 
Nabu,  and  Ashur,  are  the  special  gods  of  oracles  recognized  by 
the  Assyrian  rulers.    Marduk,  who  is  the  chief  source  of  oracles 

1  Perhaps  a  proverbial  phrase,  having  the  force  of  '  I  nurture  thee  as  thy  own 
mother  did.' 

2  Constituting  the  host  of  Ishtar.  which  is  elsewhere  referred  to,  e.g.,  IV  R.2  pi.  6i, 
col.  i.  27.  :)  Lit.,  '  the  future  or  later  things  like  the  former.' 


ORACLES  AND    OMENS.  345 

in  the  south,  is  more  rarely  appealed  to  in  the  north,  though  of 
course  recognized  as  powerful.  He  could  not  be  expected  to 
regard  with  favor  an  empire  that  so  seriously  threatened  his 
supremacy  in  the  pantheon. 

The  occasion  when  an  oracle  was  announced  was  often  one 
of  great  solemnity.  Just  as  the  prayers  in  which  the  questions 
of  the  kings  were  embodied,  were  carefully  written  out,  so  that 
the  priest  in  reciting  them  might  not  commit  any  mistakes,  so 
the  answer  to  the  prayers  were  transmitted  to  the  king  in  writ- 
ing. Among  the  oracles  of  the  days  of  Esarhaddon,  there  is  one 
coming  from  Ashur  in  which  the  ceremonies  accompanying  the 
deliverance  are  instanced.1  The  oracle  deals  with  the  Gimir- 
rites,  the  same  people  in  regard  to  whom  Esarhaddon  so 
often  consults  the  sun-god.  It  is  marked  by  the  more  definite 
character  of  its  announcements  when  compared  with  others. 
The  text  is  in  the  form  of  a  communication  made  to  the  king, 
and,  like  other  official  documents,  it  begins  with  a  salutation. 
The  gods  give  Esarhaddon  greeting.2 

Ashur  has  given  him  the  four  ends  of  the  earth. 

In  the  house  where  he  shines  and  is  great,3  the  king  has  no  rival. 

Like  the  rising  sun  he  shines. 

This  is  the  greeting  from  Bel  Tarbasi 4  and  the  assembled  gods. 

The  god  Ashur  himself  now  addresses  the  king : 

As  for  those  enemies  that  plot  against  thee,  that  force  thee  to  march  out, 

Thou  didst  open  thy  mouth  [saying],  "  Verily  I  implore  Ashur." 

I  have  heard  thy  cry. 

Out  of  the  great  gate  of  heaven  I  proclaim  aloud, 

'  Surely  I  will  hasten  to  let  fire  devour  them. 

Thou  shalt  stand  among  them. 

1  Published  by  S.  A.  Strong,  Dcitrage  zur  Assyriologic,  ii.  627-33. 

2  The  opening  lines,  containing  a  reference  to  the  Gimirrites,  are  imperfectly 
preserved. 

3  I.e.,  he  is  the  greatest  scion  of  the  reigning  dynasty. 

4  '  Lord  of  the  court '  —  a  title  of  Ashur. 


346  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

In  front  of  thee  I  shall  rise  up.1 

Up  onto  the  mountain  I  bring  them, 

There  to  rain  down  upon  them  destructive  stones. 

Thine  enemies  I  hew  down. 

With  their  blood  I  fill  the  river. 

Let  them  behold  and  glorify  me, 

For  Ashur,  the  lord  of  gods,  am  I.' 

This  important  and  striking  message,  coming  direct  from 
Ashur  we  are  told,  is  to  be  formally  presented  and  read  in  the 
presence  of  the  king.  Instructions  are  added  to  the  priests  to 
pour  out  a  libation  of  precious  oil.  Sacrifices  of  animals  and 
waving  of  incense  are  to  accompany  the  presentation. 

The  oracle,  as  the  god's  answer  to  the  king's  questions,  thus 
gave  rise  to  a  ritual  as  elaborate  as  the  rites  connected  with  the 
preparations  for  the  answer.  The  oracles  were  not  always 
trustworthy,  as  we  can  well  believe,  and  often  they  were  not 
definite  enough.  If  we  may  judge  from  an  expression  in  one 
of  the  divine  messages  to  Esarhaddon,  the  king  appears  to  have 
entered  a  complaint  against  a  former  oracle,  which  was  not  to 
his  liking.      Ishtar  accordingly  sends  the  following  message: " 

The  former  word  which  I  spoke  to  thee, 

On  it  thou  didst  not  rely. 

Now,  then,  in  the  later  one  you  may  have  confidence. 

( rlorify  me  ! 

Clearly,  the  Assyrian  kings  believed  that  the  oracles  existed 
to  announce  what  they  wanted  to  hear.  They  probably  did  not 
hesitate  to  follow  their  own  judgment  whenever  they  considered 
it  superior  to  the  advice  given  to  them  by  the  gods.  There 
would,  of  course,  be  no  difficulty  in  accounting  for  failures 
brought  about  through  obedience  to  the  oracles.  The  priests, 
hemmed  in  on  every  side  by  minute  ceremonial  observances, 
forfeited  their  power   as   mediators  by  the  slightest  failure  in 

1  As  a  protection,  ju^t  as  Jahwe  appears  in  a  pillar  of  cloud  to  protect  his  people. 

2  LVR.2  6l,  COl.  vi.  |;-52. 


ORACLES   AND    OMENS.  347 

the  observance  of  these  rites.  An  error  or  a  mishap  would 
entail  most  serious  consequences.  A  misleading  oracle,  there- 
fore, and  to  a  certain  extent,  unfavorable  omens,  would  be  the 
fault  of  the  priests.  The  deity  would  send  '  a  lying  message  ' l 
or  bring  about  unfavorable  omens  as  a  sign  of  his  or  her  dis- 
pleasure. On  the  other  hand,  the  priests  in  turn  would  not 
hesitate  —  speaking  of  course  in  the  name  of  the  gods  —  to 
accuse  the  kings  of  neglecting  Ishtar  or  Nabu  or  Shamash,  as 
the  case  may  be.  In  an  oracle  addressed  to  Esarhaddon,2 
Ishtar  of  Arbela  is  represented  as  complaining  that  the  king  has 
done  nothing  for  her,  although  she  has  done  so  much  for  him. 
Such  a  state  of  affairs  cannot  go  on. 

Since  they  do  nothing  for  me, 
I  will  not  give  anything  to  thee. 

The  king  promptly  responds  by  copious  offerings,  and  the 
goddess  appears  to  be  pacified. 

There  is  another  feature  connected  with  the  oracles  that  must 
be  touched  upon  before  passing  on.  The  oracles  stand  ob- 
viously in  close  relationship  to  the  penitential  psalms.  It  was, 
naturally,  in  times  of  political  distress  that  the  kings  would  be 
particularly  zealous  in  maintaining  themselves  on  good  terms 
with  the  powerful  gods.  Without  their  aid  success  could  not 
be  expected  to  crown  any  efforts.  Guiding  their  steps  by 
frequent  consultations  of  the  priests,  the  appeals  of  the  kings 
would  increase  in  earnestness  and  fervor  as  the  campaign  pro- 
gressed and  assumed  more  serious  aspects.  When  disaster 
stared  them  in  the  face,  they  would  be  forced  to  conclude  that 
the  gods  were  angered,  and  there  was  only  one  way  left  of 
averting  the  divine  wrath  —  a  free  confession  of  sins,  accom- 
panied, of  course,  by  offerings  and  magic  rites.  The  Assyrian 
kings  do  not  tell  us  in  their  annals  of  discomfitures  that  they 

1  See  I  Kings,  xxii.  23. 

2  Strong,  Beitrdge  zur  Assyriologie,  ii.  62S,  629. 


348  /:.!/:  VLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

encountered.  The  penitential  psalms  supply  this  omission. 
We  have  such  a  psalm  written  in  the  clays  of  Ashurbanabal,1  in 
which  that  proud  monarch  humbles  himself  before  the  great 
god  Nabu,  and  has  the  satisfaction  in  return  of  receiving  a 
reassuring  oracle.      He  prays: 

I  confess  to  thee,  Nabu,  in  the  presence  of  the  great  gods, 

|  Many'2  (?)]  are  my  sins  beyond  endurance?3 

[Lord  (?)]  of  Nineveh,  I  come  before  thee,  the  warrior  among  the  gods,  his 

brothers. 
[Prolong  (?)]  the  life  of  Ashurbanabal  for  a  long  period. 
...   At  the  feet  of  Nabu  I  prostrate  myself. 

The  god  reassures  the  king: 

I  will  grant  thee  life,  O  Ashurbanabal,  even  I, 

Nabu,  to  the  end  of  clays 

Thy  feet  shall  not  grow  weary,  nor  thy  hands  weak  (?), 

These  lips  of  thine  shall  not  cease  to  approach  me, 

Thy  tongue  shall  not  be  removed  from  thy  lips, 

For  I  give  thee  a  favorable  message. 

I  will  raise  thy  head,  I  will  increase  thy  glory  in  the  temple  of  E-babbara.4 

The  reference  to  the  temple  of  Shamash  at  Sippar  reveals 
the  situation.  Babylonia  was  the  cause  of  much  trouble  to 
Ashurbanabal,  owing  chiefly  to  the  intrigues  of  his  treacherous 
brother  Shamashshumukin.5  Ashurbanabal  at  one  time  was 
not  merely  in  danger  of  losing  control  over  the  south,  but  of 
losing  his  life  in  the  rebellion  organized  by  his  'faithless 
brother.'  A  successful  rebellion  is  a  clear  sign  of  a  god's 
displeasure.  Marduk,  as  we  have  seen,  was  not  often  appealed 
to  by  the  Assyrian  kings,  but  Nabu  seemed  always  ready  to 
help  them.     Hence  the  king  confesses  his  sins  and  makes  an 

1  Published  and  translated  by  S.  A.  Strong,  Transactions  of  the  Ninth  Inter- 
national Oriental  Congress  (1S93),  ii.  199-20S. 

-  Supplied  from  the  context,  through  comparison  with  similar  compositions. 

:!  Lit.,  '  my  soul  cannot  overcome.' 

1  The  composition  continues  in  this  strain,  Ashurbanabal  and  Nabu  speaking 
alternately.  B  See  Tide,  Babyl.-Assyi .  Ges,  hichte,  pp.  371  tea. 


ORACLES   AND    OMENS.  349 

appeal  to  the  great  Babylonian  god  and  not  to  Ashur.  He  is 
encouraged  by  the  promise  that  his  life  will  be  spared,  and  that 
his  supremacy  will  be  recognized  in  Babylonia.  The  great 
sanctuary  of  Sippar  is  here  employed  figuratively  for  the  tem- 
ples of  Babylonia  in  general.  To  be  glorified  in  that  famous 
temple  was  equivalent  to  a  recognition  of  royal  authority. 

That  these  oracles  served  a  practical  purpose  is  definitely 
proved  by  the  manner  in  which  they  are  introduced  by  the 
kings  in  their  annals.  Ashurbanabal  tells  us  that  in  the  course 
of  one  of  his  campaigns  against  Elam,  he  addressed  a  fervent 
prayer  to  Ishtar  of  Arbela,  and  in  reply  the  message  comes,  as 
in  the  texts  we  have  been  considering,  "Fear  not";  and  she 
adds,  "  Thy  hands  raised  towards  me,  and  thy  eyes  filled  with 
tears,  I  look  upon  with  favor."  1 

Dreams. 

It  is,  of  course,  not  necessary  to  assume  that  the  oracles  of 
the  gods  were  always  delivered  in  the  same  formal  manner, 
accompanied  by  elaborate  ceremonies.  The  gods  at  times 
reveal  themselves  in  a  more  direct  manner  to  their  favorites. 
In  visions  of  the  night  they  appear  to  encourage  the  Assyrian 
army  by  an  oracle.  On  one  occasion,  when  the  army  of  Ashur- 
banabal approached  a  rushing  stream  which  they  were  afraid  to 
cross,  Ishtar  makes  her  appearance  at  night,  and  declares,  "  I 
walk  in  front  of  Ashurbanabal,  the  king  who  is  the  creation  of 
my  hands." 2  The  army,  thus  reassured,  crosses  the  river  in 
safety.  On  another  occasion,  Ashurbanabal,  when  threatened 
by  the  king  of  Elam,  receives  a  message  from  Ishtar  revealed 
to  a  seer  in  a  dream  at  night.  The  seer  —  no  doubt  a  priest 
—  reports  to  the  king  :3  '  Ishtar,  dwelling  in  Arbela,  came  with 

1  George  Smith,  Attjials  of  Ashurbanabal,  p.  121. 

2  Rassam  Cylinder,  VR.  col.  v.  11.  95-103. 

3  George  Smith,  Annals  of  Ashurbanabal,  pp.  119-121. 


350  BA  B  )  7.  ONIAN-ASS  YRIAN  RELIGION. 

quivers  hung  on  her  right  and  left  side,  with  a  bow  in  her  hand, 
and  girded  (?)  with  a  pointed,  unsheathed  sword.  Before  thee 
[i.e.,  the  king]  she  stood,  and  like  the  mother  that  bore  thee.1 
Ishtar,  supreme  among  the  gods,  addressed  thee,  commanding: 
"  Be  encouraged 2  for  the  fray.     Wherever  thou  art,  I  am." 

In  connection  with  the  importance  that  the  Babylonians  and 
Assyrians,  in  common  with  all  ancient  nations,  attached  to 
dreams,  divine  messages  thus  revealed  had  a  special  significance 
fully  on  a  par  with  the  oracles  that  were  formally  delivered  with 
an  accompaniment  of  elaborate  rites.  A  god  appearing  to  one 
in  a  dream  was  a  manifestation,  the  force  of  which  could  not 
be  disputed.  It  mattered  little  to  whom  the  dream  was  sent. 
Ashur,  on  one  occasion,  chose  to  reveal  himself  to  an  enemy 
of  Ashurbanabal  with  a  message.  He  appears  in  a  dream 
before  Gyges,  the  king  of  Lydia,  and  tells  him,3  "  Pay  homage 
to  Ashurbanabal,  the  king  of  Assyria,  and  by  the  power  of  his 
name  conquer  thine  enemies."  Gyges  obeys  and  sends  a  mes- 
senger to  the  Assyrian  monarch  to  inform  him  of  the  dream. 
Occasionally  in  this  way  a  deity  might  appear  to  a  king,  but  in 
general  it  was  to  the  professional  '  dreamer  '  rather  than  to  the 
laity  to  whom  oracles  were  thus  sent.  The  message  was  not 
necessarily  delivered  in  person  by  the  deity.  Sin,  the  moon- 
god,  on  one  occasion  writes  his  message  on  the  moon's  disc: 

Against  all  who  have  evil  designs 
And  hostile  sentiments  towards 
Ashurbanabal,  the  king  of  Assyria, 
Will  I  send  a  miserable  death.4 

Every  dream  was  of  course  sent  by  some  god,  but  the  dreams 
of  others  than  those  who  acted  as  mediators  between  the  gods 
and  men  were  of  a  different  character.  They  were  omens. 
The  gods  would  reveal  themselves  indirectly  by  means  of 
pictures  or  symbols,  and  it  would  require  the  services  of  a  priest 

1  With  maternal  kindness.  :1  Rassam  Cylinder,  col.  ii.  11.  <)S  seq. 

-  Lit.,  'look  up.1  4  lb.  col.  in.  11.  122-124. 


ORACLES  AND    OMENS.  351 

again  to  interpret  such  symbols  or  omens.  The  gods  were 
asked  to  send  such  dreams  as  might  receive  a  favorable  inter- 
pretation,1 and  when  a  dream  came  unsolicited,  the  gods  were 
implored  to  convert  the  dream  into  a  favorable  omen. 

In  the  case  of  dreams,  it  will  be  apparent,  the  dividing  line 
between  oracles  proper  and  omens  becomes  exceedingly  faint, 
and  it  is  very  doubtful  whether  the  Babylonians  or  Assyrians 
recognized  any  essential  difference  between  the  two.  The 
suggestion  has  already  been  thrown  out  that  there  is  a  wider 
aspect  to  omens  in  the  Babylonian  religion  than  their  employ- 
ment in  connection  with  sacrificial  offerings.  We  have  reached 
a  point  when  it  will  be  proper  to  take  up  this  wider  aspect. 

1  E.g.,  1VR.  59,  no.  2,  21b. 


CHAPTER    XX. 


VARIOUS    CLASSES    OF   OMENS. 


There  is  a  close  connection  between  the  various  branches 
of  the  religious  literature  of  Babylonia  and  Assyria  that  we  have 
hitherto  been  considering.  The  magic  incantations  are,  as  we 
have  seen,  a  form  of  prayer.  On  the  other  hand,  prayers, 
whether  hymns  or  confessions  of  sin  with  an  appeal  for  relief 
from  suffering  or  distress,  or  embodying  the  petition  for  a  divine 
response  to  some  question  or  questions,  are  never  entirely 
dissociated  from  incantations,  and  are  invariably  based  upon 
the  same  beliefs  that  give  to  the  element  of  magic  such  a  promi- 
nent place  in  the  religion.  The  omens  form  part  of  this  same 
order  of  beliefs.  The  connecting  link  between  incantations  and 
omens  is  the  sense  of  mystery  impressed  upon  man  by  two 
orders  of  phenomena  • —  the  phenomena  of  his  own  life  and  the 
phenomena  of  the  things  about  him.  In  his  own  life,  nothing 
was  more  mysterious  to  him  than  the  power  of  speech.  It  is 
doubtful  whether  he  recognized  that  the  animals  communicated 
with  one  another  by  means  of  the  sounds  that  they  emitted;  but 
even  if  he  did,  the  great  gap  separating  such  means  of  commu- 
nication from  the  power  residing  in  the  combination  of  sounds, 
of  which  he  could  avail  himself,  must  have  been  all  the  more 
impressive.  In  view  of  this,  it  is  not  difficult  to  understand 
that  a  magic  force  was  attributed  to  words  as  such.  Of  course, 
a  somewhat  advanced  degree  of  culture  must  have  been  reached 
before  such  a  belief  would  be  given  a  definite  form  of  expres- 
sion; but  even  in  the  simplest  form  of  social  organization  the 
notion  of  authority  necessarily  exists,  and  authority  is  insepa- 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  353 

rable  from  words.  The  chief  commands,  and  the  conclusion  is 
naturally  drawn  that  the  words  he  utters  are  imbued  with  the 
power  to  force  obedience.  These  two  factors  —  the  mystery  of 
speech  and  the  practical  demonstration  of  the  power  residing  in 
words  —  are  sufficient  to  account  for  the  part  played  by  incan- 
tations among  all  nations  at  a  certain  stage  of  their  religious 
development;  and  once  introduced,  the  conservatism  attaching 
to  religious  rites  would  ensure  their  continuance  even  after  the 
popular  religious  beliefs  had  passed  far  beyond  the  stage  in 
question.  The  modifications  introduced  into  the  incantations 
would  be  nigh  endless.  There  would  develop  a  tendency  to 
greater  complications  in  the  combination  of  words.  At  the  same 
time  their  literary  form  would  be  improved.  Prayers  and  hymns 
reflecting  advanced  religious  sentiments  would  be  produced, 
but  the  magic  element  connected  with  the  words  as  such  would 
not  for  that  reason  be  lost  sight  of.  The  efficacy  of  such  prayers 
would  still  depend  upon  their  being  uttered  in  the  right  manner 
and  —  what  is  equally  to  the  point  —  by  the  right  person. 
Corresponding  to  the  chief  in  secular  affairs  ■ —  who  alone  can 
pronounce  words  that  give  evidence  of  their  power  by  the  results 
produced  —  is  the  priest  in  religious  affairs  to  whom,  as  the 
mediator  between  the  gods  and  men,  the  secret  is  entrusted  of 
uttering  the  right  words  in  the  right  way,  so  as  to  produce  the 
desired  results,  to  force,  as  it  were,  obedience  from  the  gods,  as 
a  chief  forces  obedience  from  his  subjects.  In  a  more  advanced 
stage  of  religious  culture,  the  position  of  the  priest  is  no  less 
powerful  and  important.  When  incantations  yield  to  prayers 
in  the  proper  sense,  or  are  combined  with  prayers,  it  is  only  the 
priests  who  can  make  the  prayers  effective  by  their  interceding 
in  some  way  with  the  gods,  whether  by  adding  their  appeal  to 
that  of  the  supplicant,  or  by  the  performance  of  the  rites 
accompanying  prayer,  or  by  their  aid  in  leading  the  worshipper 
into  the  presence  of  the  deity  and  standing  with  him  before  the 
throne  of  grace.. 


354  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

When  man  turns  from  a  contemplation  of  self  to  the  things 
around  him,  there  is  added  to  the  sense  of  the  mysterious 
which  is  aroused  in  him,  the  feeling  of  his  own  weakness  which 
is  borne  in  upon  him  with  overpowering  force.  He  cannot  fail 
to  realize  how  dependent  he  is  upon  the  sun,  the  moon,  the 
rain,  and  the  storm.  At  every  step,  he  takes  dangers  beset  his 
path.  The  animal  world  is  at  times  hostile,  at  times  friendly; 
but  whether  the  one  or  the  other,  it  is  essential  for  him  to  care- 
fully note  all  that  is  going  on  around  him.  Every  happening 
or  sight  of  an  unusual  character  arouses  now  his  sense  of  fear, 
and  again  his  hope.  He  learns  to  attach  special  importance  to 
deviations  from  the  normal  course  of  things.  There  must  be  a 
reason  for  the  exception  from  the  rule.  It  betokens  something, 
and,  concerned  as  man  primarily  is  for  his  own  welfare,  he 
naturally  comes  to  connect  both  the  regular  phenomena  of 
nature  as  well  as  the  deviations,  the  normal  traits  and  habits 
of  the  animal  world  as  well  as  peculiar  features  occasionally 
occurring,  with  his  own  fate.  To  forestall  the  future  was  his 
only  safeguard  against  the  dangers  in  store  for  him.  It  was  of 
the  utmost  importance  to  him  to  know  what  was  coming  or,  at 
all  events,  to  be  on  the  lookout  for  something,  in  order  to  be 
in  a  proper  frame  to  receive  either  the  benefits  or  to  meet  the 
difficulties  of  the  situation. 

His  powers  of  observation  —  upon  which  man  in  a  primitive 
state  depended  almost  entirely  for  his  sustenance  —  were  thus 
further  strengthened  by  the  necessity  of  protecting  himself,  so 
far  as  possible,  against  the  uncertainties  of  the  future.  Nothing 
would  escape  him.  The  movement  of  the  stars  and  planets, 
their  position  at  different  seasons  and  periods,  the  appearance 
of  the  clouds,  an  eclipse,  the  conditions  of  the  streams,  an 
earthquake,  the  direction  of  the  winds,  storms,  the  flight  of 
birds,  the  barking  of  dogs,  the  movements  of  snakes  and  ser- 
pents, peculiar  marks  on  the  bodies  of  children,  of  adults  and 
animals,  monstrosities   among  mankind   or  the  brute  creation, 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  355 

the  meeting  with  certain  persons  or  animals,  the  rustling  of 
leaves,  the  change  of  seasons,  the  lustre  of  precious  stones,  all 
attracted  man's  attention.  Whatever  he  saw  might  portend 
something  to  him,  in  fact  did  portend  something;  hence  the  one 
great  aim  and  ideal  of  his  life  was  to  see  everything.  Seeing 
meant  foreseeing,  and  the  man  who  could  see  everything — the 
seer  par  excellence,  who  could  also  understand  what  he  saw  • — 
held  in  his  hands  the  key  that  would  unlock  the  secrets  of  the 
future.     He  possessed  the  means  of  forecasting  events. 

Apart,  then,  from  the  interpretation  of  omens  in  connection 
with  sacrifices  and  incantations,  the  individual  had  to  be  on  the 
outlook  at  all  times  for  signs  and  portents.  To  neglect  them 
would  entail  serious  consequences. 

This  wider  aspect  of  omens  accounts  for  the  extensive  omen 
literature  that  arose  in  Babylonia  and  Assyria.  Fully  one-fourth 
of  the  portion  of  Ashurbanabal's  library  that  has  been  discovered 
consists  of  omens,1  tablets  of  various  size  in  which  explanations 
are  afforded  of  all  physical  peculiarities  to  be  observed  in 
animals  and  men,  of  natural  phenomena,  of  the  position  and 
movements  of  the  planets  and  stars,  of  the  incidents  and 
accidents  of  public  and  private  life,  —  in  short,  of  all  possible 
occurrences  and  situations. 

As  yet  but  a  small  proportion  of  this  literature  has  been 
published,  and  a  thorough  understanding  of  it  is  impossible 
until  systematic  publications  shall  have  been  issued.  Meanwhile 
it  is  safe  to  assert  that,  as  in  the  case  of  incantations  and 
prayers,  the  omens  were  generally  combined  into  series  by  the 
Babylonian  and  Assyrian  scribes. 

1  Illustrated  by  the  four  volumes  of  Bezold's  Catalogue  of  the  Koujunjik,  Collec- 
tion of  the  British  Museum  (London,  18S9-96). 


356  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Omens  from  Planets  and  Stars. 

Ihering  observes  l  that  the  stars  were  observed  by  the  Baby- 
lonians in  the  interest  of  navigation.  While  this  is  true,  yet 
the  chief  motive  in  the  development  of  astronomy  in  the 
Euphrates  Valley  was  the  belief  that  the  movements  of  the 
heavenly  bodies  portended  something  that  was  important  for 
man  to  know.  That  the  stars  served  as  guides  to  the  mariner 
was  only  an  additional  reason  for  attaching  great  importance  to 
the  heavenly  phenomena.  Scientific  observations  were  but 
means  to  an  end ;  and  the  end  was  invariably  the  derivation  of 
omens  from  the  movements  and  position  of  the  planets  and 
stars.  When,  therefore,  we  find  the  astronomers  sending  reports 
to  their  royal  masters  apparently  of  a  purely  scientific  character, 
we  may  be  certain  that  although  no  omens  are  mentioned,  both 
parties  had  omens  in  mind.  The  astronomical  reports,  of  which 
quite  a  number  have  already  been  published,2  may  therefore  be 
reckoned  as  part  of  the  omen  literature.  The  vernal  equinox 
was  a  period  of  much  significance.  The  astronomer  royal 
accordingly  reports:3 

On  the  sixth  day  of  Nisan,4 

Day  and  night  were  balanced. 

There  were  six  double  hours  of  day, 

Six  double  hours  of  night. 

May  Nabu  and  Marduk 

Be  gracious  to  the  king,  my  lord. 

On  another  occasion  the  equinox  took  place  on  the  15th  of 
Nisan,5  and  accordingly  this  is  reported.  Again,  the  appearance 
of  the  new  moon  was  anxiously  looked  for  each  month,  and 
the  king  is  informed  whether  or  not  it  was  seen  on  the  29th  or 
30th  day  of  the  month." 

1  Vorgeschichte  der  Indo-Euroftacr,  pp.  221  seq.    4  The  1st  month  of  the  year. 

2  E.g.,  IIIR.  51.  B  MR.  51,  110.2. 
*  lb.  no.  1.  ,;  lb.  no.  3. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  357 

A  watch  we  kept 

On  the  twenty-ninth  day, 

The  moon  we  saw. 

May  Nabu  and  Marduk 

Be  gracious  to  the  king,  my  lord. 

From  Nabua  of  the  city  of  Ashur. 

An  extraordinary  event,  such  as  an  eclipse,  is  made  the  sub- 
ject of  a  more  elaborate  report.  The  Babylonian  astronomers 
had  developed  their  scientific  attainments  to  the  point  of  cal- 
culating the  time  when  an  eclipse  of  the  sun  or  the  moon  would 
take  place.  As  this  period  approached,  they  watched  for  the 
eclipse.  We  have  an  interesting  specimen  of  a  report  in  which 
the  astronomer  announces  that  an  expected  eclipse  fdr  which  a 
watch  was  kept  for  three  days  did  not  appear.1  Another 
addressed  to  an  official  reads  : 2 

To  the  Agriculturist,3  my  lord, 

Thy  servant  Nabushumiddin, 

An  officer  of  Nineveh, 

May  Nabu  and  Marduk  be  gracious 

To  the  Agriculturist,  my  lord. 

The  fourteenth  day  we  kept  a  watch  for  the  moon. 

The  moon  suffered  an  eclipse. 

The  reports  pass  over  into  indications  of  omens  with  an  ease 
which  shows  that  the  observations  of  the  astronomers  were 
made  with  this  ulterior  motive  in  view.  A  report  which 
forms  a  supplement  to  one  above  translated  furnishes  the  inter- 
pretation given  to  the  vernal  equinox : 4 

The  moon  and  sun  are  balanced, 

The  subjects  will  be  faithful,5 

The  king  of  the  land  will  reign  for  a  long  time. 

l  IIIR.  51,  no.  9.  -  lb.  no.  7. 

3  What  the  station  of  this  official  was  we  are  not  told. 

i  IIIR.  58,  no.  7. 

5  Lit., '  true  speech  in  the  mouth  of  the  people,'  i.e.,  there  will  be  no  sedition. 


358  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

The  complement,  then,  to  the  purely  scientific  observations 
is  furnished  by  these  official  communications  to  the  kings  and 
others,  setting  forth  in  response,  no  doubt,  to  commands  or 
inquiries,  the  meaning  of  any  particular  phenomenon,  or  of  the 
position  of  the  planets,  or  of  any  of  the  stars  at  any  time,  or  of 
their  movements.  Of  such  communications  we  have  a  large 
number.  They  illustrate  the  great  attention  that  was  paid  to 
details  in  the  observation  of  the  heavenly  bodies.  The  moon 
as  the  basis  of  the  calendrical  system  occupies  the  first  place  in 
these  reports.  Its  movements  were  more  varied  than  those  of 
the  sun.  Through  its  phases,  its  appearance  and  disappearance 
at  stated  intervals,  a  safe  point  of  departure  was  obtained  for 
time  calculations.  While  the  sun  through  its  daily  course 
regulated  the  divisions  of  the  day,  the  moon  by  its  phases  fixed 
the  division  of  weeks  and  months.  The  moon  never  appeared 
quite  the  same  on  two  successive  nights  nor  in  the  same  part 
of  the  heavens.  The  more  variety,  the  more  significance  —  was 
a  principle  of  general  application  in  the  interpretation  of  omens. 
Whether  the  Babylonians  also  recognized  an  influence  of  the 
moon  on  the  tides,  we  have  no  certain  means  of  determining, 
but  it  is  eminently  likely  that  trained  as  their  astronomers  were 
in  careful  observation,  this  was  the  case.  But  apart  from  this, 
there  were  many  events  in  public  and  private  affairs  that 
appeared  to  them  to  stand  in  close  connection  with  the  move- 
ments of  the  orb  of  night.  Nothing  that  occurred  being 
regarded  as  accidental,  the  conclusion  was  forced  upon  the 
Babylonians  that  the  time  when  something  was  undertaken  was 
of  significance.  The  fact  that  certain  undertakings  succeeded, 
while  others  failed,  was  most  easily  explained  upon  the  theory 
that  there  were  periods  favorable  for  the  action  involved 
and  periods  unfavorable.  The  gathering  of  past  experience 
thus  becomes  a  guiding  principle  in  the  interpretation  of 
the  movements  of  the  moon ;  and  what  applies  to  the  moon 
applies,   of    course,    to    the    other    planets    and    to    the    stars. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  359 

No  doubt  other  factors  are  involved,  such  as  association  of 
ideas ;  but  it  is  evident  from  a  careful  study  of  the  omen  litera- 
ture that  conclusions  drawn  from  what  appears  to  us  as  the 
accidental  relation  of  past  occurrences  to  the  phenomena  pre- 
sented by  the  planets  and  stars  constituted  fully  three-fourths 
of  the  wisdom  of  the  Euphratean  augurs.  The  same  report,  of 
which  a  portion  has  already  been  quoted,1  continues  after  inter- 
preting the  meaning  of  the  equinox  with  a  diagnosis  of  other 
concurrent  conditions:2 

Sun  and  moon  are  seen  apart,3 

The  king  of  the  country  will  manifest  wisdom.4 

On  the  fourteenth  day  sun  and  moon  are  seen  together, 

There  will  be  loyalty  in  the  land, 

The  gods  of  Babylonia  are  favorably  inclined, 

The  soldiery  will  be  in  accord  with  the  king's  desire, 

The  cattle  of  Babylonia  will  pasture  in  safety.5 

From  Ishtar-shumeresh. 

The  same  conditions  appearing  on  another  day  may  portend 
precisely  the  reverse.     So  another  report  informs  the  king : 6 

On  the  fifteenth  day  the  sun  and  moon  are  seen  together, 
A  powerful  enemy  raises  his  weapons  against  the  land, 
The  enemy  will  smash  the  great  gate  of  the  city, 
The  star  Anu  appears  bright, 
The  enemy  will  devastate. 

It  is  quite  evident  that  such  reports  must  have  been  sent  in 
response  to  royal  orders  asking  for  the  meaning  of  existing  con- 
ditions or  of  conditions  that  may  be  observed  on  certain  days. 
At  times  the  prognostications  assume  a  remarkable  degree  of 
definiteness  which    forms  a  striking    contrast    to  the    general 

1  IIIR.  58,  no.  7.  4  His  decision  will  be  wise. 

2  lb.  no.  6.  5  Safe  from  attacks. 

3  Are  not  seen  at  the  same  time.  °  IIIR.  5S,  no.  13. 


YiO  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

vagueness  of  the  oracles.  An  official,  Balasi,  reports  l  on  one 
occasion  regarding  the  significance  of  the  moon  appearing 
unexpectedly  : 

The  moon  is  seen  out  of  season, 

Crops  will  be  small. 

On  the  twelfth  clay  the  moon  is  seen  together  with  the  sun.2 

Contrary  to  the  calculated  time, 

The  moon  and  sun  appear  together, 

A  strong  enemy  will  devastate  the  land. 

The  king  of  Babylonia  will  be  forced  to  submit  to  his  enemy. 

On  the  twelfth  day,  the  moon  with  the  sun  is  seen, 

( >n  the  twelfth  day  is  seen. 

Evil  is  in  store  for  Babylonia. 

It  is  a  favorable  sign  for  Elam  and  the  west  land, 

But  surely  unfavorable  for  Babylonia. 

The  reports  were  not  always  concerned  with  political  affairs. 
Frequently  there  is  a  reference  to  lions  and  hyenas  that  might 
be  expected  to  make  their  appearance  because  of  certain  natu- 
ral phenomena.  Often  crops  are  referred  to,  and  according  as 
the  conditions  are  favorable  or  not,  fertility  or  famine  is 
predicted  in  the  official  reports.  On  other  occasions  the 
astrologers  venture  the  very  safe  prognostication  that  male 
children  will  be  born  or  that  there  will  be  miscarriages,  though 
it  seems  likely  that  in  such  cases  the  forecast  is  intended  for 
the  affairs  of  the  palace  alone. 

We  have  seen 8  what  great  importance  was  attached  by  the 
Babylonians  to  eclipses.  It  will  be  appropriate,  therefore,  to 
give  a  specimen  of  an  astrologer's  report  in  reference  to  such  a 
phenomenon  : 4 

The  moon  disappeared,5  evil  will  settle  in  the  land. 
The  moon,  contrary  to  calculation,  disappeared. 

1  //'.  no.  12. 

2  This  appears  to  be  the  unusual  occurrence  involved. 

8  See  above,  pp.  281,  332.  4  111  K .  58,  no.  14. 

5  I.e.,  contrary  to  calculation. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  361 

An  eclipse  has  taken  place. 

On  the  twenty-ninth  day  the  moon  disappeared 

And  the  sun  on  the  day  of  the  eclipse  entered  the  circle.1 

It  is  an  eclipse  of  El  am.'2 

If  in  the  month  of  Kislev,3  an  eclipse  is  observed 

That  encircles  (?)  the  sun  and  the  moon  disappears, 

Upon  the  observation  of  the  eclipse, 

Then  may  the  king  be  exalted. 

May  the  heart  of  the  king,  my  lord,  rejoice. 

From  Khushi-ilu,  the  servant  of  the  king,  the  eponym. 

Another  report  reads  : 4 

To  the  king,  my  lord, 

Thy  servant  Ishtar-iddinabal, 

The  chief  of  the  astronomers  of  Arbela. 

May  Nabu,  Marduk,  Ishtar  of  Arbela 

Be  gracious  to  the  king,  my  lord, 

On  the  twenty-ninth  day  a  watch  we  kept. 

The  observatory  was  covered, 

The  moon  we  did  not  see. 

This  report  was  sent  on  the  second  day  of  the  month  of 
Shebat. 5  From  these  specimens  and  others,  it  is  evident  that 
reports  regarding  the  appearance  or  non-appearance  of  the 
new  moon  were  regularly  sent.  But  in  addition  to  this,  the 
kings  sent  to  the  observatory  on  numerous  other  occasions 
for  information  with  reference  to  the  significance  of  certain 
phenomena. 

As  in  the  case  of  the  moon,  so  also  for  the  sun  and  the  stars, 
reports  were  transmitted  that  served  as  guides  in  directing  the 
kings  in  their  affairs.  So  on  one  occasion  Nabu-mushesi  fore- 
casts that6 

If  the  '  great  lion  '  star  is  dark, 
It  is  favorable  for  the  country. 

1  The  shadow.  *  IIIR.  51,  no.  5. 

2  Favorable  to  Elam  (so  Oppert  translates).  5  nth  month. 

3  9th  month.  6  IIIR.  59,  no.  13. 


362  BABYLONIAN- ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

If  the  'king'  star  is  dark, 

The  chamberlain  x  (?)  of  the  palace  dies. 

The  official  character  of  these  reports  is  one  of  their  signifi- 
cant features.  Their  great  variety  is  an  indication  of  the  fre- 
quent occasions  on  which  the  kings  consulted  the  astrologers. 
No  important  enterprise  was  undertaken  without  first  ascertain- 
ing what  phenomena  might  be  looked  for  on  the  day  fixed  for 
any  action,  and  what  these  phenomena  portended.  In  the  case 
of  the  Assyrian  reports,  it  is  natural  to  find  many  illusions  to 
foreign  nations,  since  war  occupied  so  much  of  the  time  and 
energies  of  the  Assyrian  rulers.  But  we  have  seen  that  for 
private  affairs  the  astrologers  were  also  consulted,  as  well  as  for 
the  internal  affairs  of  the  country.  The  reports  illustrate 
the  practical  application  of  what  became  known  in  the  ancient 
world  as  "  Chaldaean  wisdom."  If,  however,  we  would  know 
the  source  whence  the  astrologers  derived  the  knowledge  which 
they  furnished  in  their  reports,  we  must  turn  to  the  long  lists 
prepared  by  the  priests,  in  which  all  possible  phenomena  con- 
nected with  the  planets  and  stars  were  noted  and  their  meaning 
indicated.  These  compilations  constitute  the  '  Priestly  Codes  ' 
of  the  Babylonians,  and,  as  already  intimated,  they  were 
combined  just  as  the  incantations  and  prayers,  into  series. 
Many  such  series  must  have  existed  at  one  time  in  Babylonia. 
A  great  temple  was  incomplete  without  its  observatory,  and 
we  are  warranted  in  concluding  that  every  great  religious 
center  of  the  Euphrates  Valley  had  its  collection  of  omen 
tablets.  The  natural  ambition  of  the  priests  was  to  make  such 
a  series  as  complete  as  possible.  The  larger  the  number  of 
observations  it  contained,  the  greater  the  possibility  of  finding 
an  answer  to  the  question  put  to  them.  To  these  lists  addi- 
tions would  constantly  be  made,  and,  if  we  may  judge  from  the 
manner  of  literary  composition  that  prevailed  among  the  ancient 
Hebrews  and  later  among  the  Arabs,  the  work  of  the  compilers 

1  Some  palace  official  is  mentioned. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  363 

of  omen  series  consisted  essentially  in  combining  whatever 
material  they  could  obtain,  and  adding  such  observations  as 
they  themselves  had  made.  While,  therefore,  the  omen  code 
of  one  place  might  differ  in  details  from  that  of  another,  not 
only  would  the  underlying  principles  be  the  same  in  all,  but 
each  series  would  represent  an  aggregation  of  experiences  and 
observations  drawn  from  various  quarters. 

A  large  omen  series  of  which  as  yet  only  fragments  have  been 
published x  bears  the  title  '  Illumination  of  Bel.'  It  is  esti- 
mated that  this  astrological  code  embraced  more  than  one 
hundred  tablets.  From  the  fragments  published,  the  general 
method  employed  in  the  preparation  of  the  series  can  be  gath- 
ered. To  the  moon  and  to  the  sun,  to  each  of  the  planets,  and 
to  the  important  stars  a  separate  section  was  assigned.  In 
this  section  the  peculiarities,  regular  and  irregular,  connected 
with  each  of  the  bodies  were  noted,  their  appearance  and  disap- 
pearance, the  conditions  prevailing  at  rising  and  at  setting,  the 
relationship  of  the  moon  to  the  sun  or  to  a  star,  of  the  stars  to 
one  another  and  to  the  ecliptic,  were  set  forth.  Since,  however, 
the  time  when  a  phenomenon  connected  with  a  planet  or  star 
was  as  important  as  the  phenomenon  itself,  observations  were 
entered  for  the  various  months  of  the  year  and  for  various 
days  in  each  month.  The  days  were  not  arbitrarily  chosen, 
but,  as  there  is  every  reason  to  believe,  selected  on  the  basis 
of  past  experience.  Similarly  the  interpretations  of  the 
phenomena  were  founded  on  the  actual  occurrence  of  certain 
events  at  certain  times  when  the  conditions  indicated  actually 
existed.  A  single  occurrence  might  suffice  for  predicating  a 
connection  between  the  event  and  the  phenomenon.  The 
coincidence  would  constitute  an  observation,  but  the  omen 
would  naturally  gain  additional  force  if  it  was  based  on  a 
repeated  observation  of  the  same  phenomenon  on  the  same  day 

l  E.g.,  IIIR.  52,  no.  2  ;  60  and  61.  Professor  Craig  of  the  University  of  Michigan 
is  now  preparing  for  publication  all  the  fragments  of  this  series.  (See  his  Assyrian 
and  Babylonian  Religions  Texts,  ii.  7.) 


364  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

of  the  same  month.  But  such  a  case  would  be  rare,  and  the 
effort  of  the  astrologers  would  be  directed  simply  towards  gather- 
ing as  many  observations  of  phenomena  as  possible.  They 
would  rest  content  when  they  had  found  a  single  connection 
between  the  phenomenon  and  the  event.  Their  success  in 
giving  an  answer  to  a  question  put  to  them  as  to  what  might 
happen  on  a  certain  day,  fixed  for  battle  or  for  laying  the 
foundations  of  an  edifice,  or  for  dedicating  a  temple,  for  setting 
out  on  an  expedition,  or  for  any  undertaking  whatsoever,  would 
depend  on  the  completeness  of  their  lists,  and  correspondingly 
the  interpretation  of  a  phenomenon  occurring  on  any  day 
would  entail  no  difficulties  if  in  their  consultation  lists  the 
phenomenon  would  be  recorded. 

The  22d  tablet  of  the  series  '  Illumination  of  Bel '  deals  with 
the  important  subject  of  eclipses.  It  contains  88  lines,  and 
furnishes  us  with  a  good  specimen  of  the  class  of  omens  under 
consideration.  It  begins  x  with  eclipses  that  may  take  place 
during  the  first  month,  and  runs  along  through  the  twelve 
months  of  the  year.  The  14th,  15th,  16th,  20th,  and  21st  days 
of  the  month  are  those  set  down  when  eclipses  have  been 
observed.  The  official  character  of  the  omens  is  indicated  by 
their  repeated  references  to  the  nations  with  which  Babylonia 
-  and  later  Assyria  —  came  into  contact,  and  to  the  fate  in 
store  for  the  rulers  of  the  country.  For  the  third  month,  the 
tablet  notes  : 

In  the  month  of  Sivan,  an  eclipse  happening  on  the  14th  day.  proceed- 
ing from  east  to  west,  beginning  with  the  middle  watch,- and  ending -with 
the  morning  watch,  the  shadow  being  seen  in  the  cast  —  the  side  of  obscura- 
tion -  furnishes  an  omen  8  for  the  king  of  Dilmun.4  The  king  of  Dilmun 
is  slain. 

1  1 1 1  K.  60.     The  fust  eleven  lines  are  broken  off. 

2  I.e..  of  the  night.  The  night,  it  will  be  recalled,  was  divided  into  three  watches 
of  four  hours  each.  :!  Lit.,  a  '  divine  decision  (or  oracle)  is  given.' 

1  An  island  near  the  head  of  the  Persian  Gulf,  often  referred  to  in  the  historical 
texts.     See  Tiele,  BabyL-Assyr.  Gesch.  p.  8S,  etc. 


VARIOUS  CI  ASSES   OF  OMENS.  365 

An  eclipse  happening  on  the  15th  day,  the  king  of  Dilmun  is  slain,  and 
some  one  seizes  the  throne. 

An  eclipse  happening  on  the  16th  day,  the  king  is  deposed  and  slain, 
and  a  worthless  person  seizes  the  throne. 

An  eclipse  happening  on  the  20th  day,  rains  descend  from  heaven,  and 
the  canals  are  flooded. 

An  eclipse  happening  on  the  21st  day,  sorrow  and  despair  in  the  land. 
The  land  is  full  of  corpses. 

The  eclipses  for  the  fourth  month  furnish  omens  for  the  king 
of  Guti  —  another  district  with  which  Babylonia  and  Assyria 
had  frequent  dealings. 

An  eclipse  happening  in  the  month  of  Tammuz  on  the  14th  clay,  pro- 
ceeding from  the  west  to  the  south,  beginning  with  the  first  watch  and 
ending  with  the  middle  watch,  the  shadow  being  seen  in  the  west  —  the 
side  of  obscuration  —  furnishes  an  omen  for  the  king  of  Guti.  Overthrow 
of  Guti  by  force,  followed  by  complete  submission. 

An  eclipse  happening  on  the  15th  day,1  rains  descend  from  heaven, 
floods  come  upon  the  land,  famine  in  the  land. 

An  eclipse  happening  on  the  16th  day,  women  have  miscarriages. 

An  eclipse  happening  on  the  20th  day,  storms  set  in  and  famine ;  after- 
wards for  a  year  storms  destroy  property.2 

An  eclipse  happening  on  the  21st  day,  the  armies  of  the  king  revolt  and 
deliver  him  into  the  hands  of  enemies. 

The  eclipses  of  the  following  month  deal  with  several 
countries. 

An  eclipse  in  the  month  of  Ab3  on  the  14th  day,  proceeding  from  the 
south  to  the  east,  beginning  with  the  first  watch,  or  with  the  morning  watch, 
and  ending  at  sunrise,  the  shadow  being  seen  in  the  south  —  the  side  of 
obscuration — furnishes  an  omen  for  the  king  of  Umliash.  The  soldiery 
are  engaged  in  severe  conflicts  for  a  year,  and  are  slain  by  force  of  arms. 

An  eclipse  happening  on  the  15th  day,4  the  king  dies,  and  rains  descend 
from  heaven,  and  floods  fill  the  canals. 

1  Under  the  same  circumstances. 

2  Lit.,  '  cattle ' ;  but  cattle  appears  to  be  used  for  '  property '  in  general,  just  as 
our  English  word  '  chattel.' 

3  5th  month. 

4  Under  the  same  circumstances. 


366  BAB  YLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

An  eclipse  happening  on  the  1 6th  day,  the  king  of  Babylonia  dies. 
Pestilence1  feeds  upon  the  country. 

An  eclipse  happening  on  the  20th  day,  the  king  of  the  Hittites2  in 
person   (?)  seizes  the  throne. 

An  eclipse  happening  on  the  21st  day,  a  deity  strikes  (?)  the  king,  and 
fire  consumes  king  and  land. 

From  these  specimens,  the  general  principle  of  the  section  is 
apparent.  Since  eclipses  portend  public  and  political  disasters 
of  some  kind,  the  compiler  has  carefully  gathered  oracles  given 
on  previous  occasions  to  some  ruler,  or  observations  of  the 
events  that  occurred  at  the  time  of  the  recorded  eclipses.  The 
apparently  restricted  application  of  the  omens  was  no  hindrance 
to  their  practical  use.  In  the  event  of  an  astrologer  being 
consulted  with  regard  to  the  significance  of  an  eclipse  on  a  cer- 
tain day,  his  list  would  furnish  a  safe  basis  for  further  prognos- 
tications, suitable  to  the  political  conditions  that  prevailed.  But 
in  order  to  meet  all  contingencies,  other  lists  furnishing  further 
omens  for  eclipses  were  added.  The  2 2d  tablet  of  the  '  Illu- 
mination of  Bel '  series  is  followed  by  one 3  which,  while  dealing 
with  the  same  subject,  approaches  it  somewhat  differently,  and 
is  based  on  a  different  principle.  It  begins  again  with  the  fust 
month,  and  in  twelve  paragraphs  takes  up  in  succession  the 
months  of  the  year.  Choosing  for  comparison  the  same  three 
months,  the  third,  fourth,  and  fifth,  which  we  selected  in  the 
case  of  the  22d  tablet,  it  will  be  seen  that,  while  the  references 
are  again  to  public  affairs,  the  prognostications  are  of  a  more 
general  character  and  of  wider  applicability. 

If  in  the  3d  month  an  eclipse  takes  place  on  the  14th  day,  rains  will 
descend  and  flood  the  canals.  Storms  will  cause  inundations.  The  soldiery 
1 .1  I'.abylonia  will  destroy  the  country.  An  eclipse  on  the  1  5th  day  indii  ates 
that  king  against  king  will  send  troops.4     The  king  of  legions  dies.     An 

1  Lit.,  Nergal — -the  personification  of  pestilence  and  death. 
-  Repeated  in  the  text  by  an  error  of  the  scribe. 
:*  I  UK.  60,  col.  ii.  90  to  col.  iii.  24. 

!  I.e..  there  will  be  war.  One  is  reminded  of  the  modern  superstition  which  asso- 
ciates war  with  the  '  northern  light '  in  the  heavens. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OE  OMENS.  367 

eclipse  on  the  16th  day  signifies  that  the  king  will  be  slain,  and  that  some 
one  will  seize  the  throne.1  An  eclipse  on  the  20th  day  means  that  the 
king  will  hand  his  throne  to  his  son.  An  eclipse  happening  on  the  21st 
clay  portends  rain,2  and  an  invasion  of  the  enemy's  land. 

For  the  4th  month  an  eclipse  on  the  14th  day  portends  that  rains  will 
descend  and  the  canals  will  be  flooded.  Rains  will  cause  inundations. 
There  will  be  famine.  A  large  country  will  be  reduced  to  a  small  one.  An 
eclipse  on  the  15th  day  portends  that  rains  will  descend,  canals  will  be 
flooded,  and  there  will  be  famine  in  the  land.  An  eclipse  on  the  16th  day 
-portends  famine  for  a  year.  An  eclipse  on  the  20th  day  portends  destruc- 
tion of  the  king  and  his  army.  An  eclipse  happening  on  the  21st  day  indi- 
cates that  there  will  be  a  strong  wind  that  will  destroy  the  riches  of  the  sea.3 

For  the  5th  month  an  eclipse  on  the  14th  day  portends  rains  and  flood- 
ing of  canals.  The  crops  will  be  good  and  king  will  send  peace  to  king.4 
An  eclipse  on  the  15th  day  portends  destructive  war.  The  land  will  be 
filled  with  corpses.  An  eclipse  on  the  16th  day  indicates  that  pregnant 
women  will  be  happily  delivered  of  their  offspring.  An  eclipse  on  the  20th 
day  portends  that  lions  will  cause  terror  and  that  reptiles  will  appear  ;  an 
eclipse  on  the  21st  day  that  destruction  (?)  will  overtake  the  riches  of  the 
sea.3 

The  vagueness  of  many  of  the  prognostications  is  in  all  prob- 
abilities intentional,  just  as  we  found  to  be  the  case  in  most  of 
the  oracles  announced  to  the  kings.  To  predict  rains  during 
the  rainy  months  was  comparatively  safe.  The  storms  which 
visited  Babylonia  annually  brought  with  them  destruction  of 
cattle.  They  conditioned  the  fertility  of  the  country,  but 
pestilence  was  often  caused  by  the  evaporation  of  the  waters. 
Again,  military  expeditions  were  usually  undertaken  in  the 
spring  of  the  year  before  the  great  heat  set  in,  and  in  a  country 
like  Assyria,  it  was  safe  to  hazard  a  vague  prediction  that  hostil- 
ities would  ensue,  and  that  some  district  would  be  diminished. 

What  may  be  called  the  'eclectic'  character  of  the  omen 
series  under  consideration  thus  becomes  apparent.      The  lists 

1  I.c,  there  will  be  sedition. 

2  So  a  variant  text. 

3  I.e.,  will  play  havoc  with  the  inhabitants  of  the  deep. 

4  I.c,  there  will  be  peace. 


36S  BA  /■'  YLONIA N-ASS YRIAN  RELIGION. 

consisted,  on  the  one  hand,  of  omens  obtained  on  certain 
occasions  and  with  reference  to  some  specific  circumstance, 
such  as  a  campaign  against  some  country,  and,  on  the  other 
hand,  of  prognostications  of  a  more  general  character,  based  on 
the  general  climatic  conditions  of  the  country,  and  referring  to 
events  of  frequent  occurrence.  All  that  the  scribes  in  preparing 
the  series  were  concerned  with,  was  to  collect  as  many  omens 
as  they  could,  and  to  arrange  them  in  some  convenient  order. 
Just  as  they  prepared  lists  referring  to  military  events,  so  they 
put  together  others  in  which  some  other  theme  was  treated. 
The  reports  and  omen  tablets  thus  complement  one  another. 
The  latter  are  based  on  the  former,  and  the  former  were 
obtained  by  the  interpretation  of  phenomena,  furnished  by  the 
tablets  and  applied  to  the  particular  case  submitted  to  the 
priests.  We  need  not,  of  course,  suppose  that  all  prognostica- 
tions found  in  the  series,  especially  in  those  parts  of  it  which 
are  of  a  more  general  character,  were  based  upon  reports  actu- 
ally made,  any  more  than  that  the  official  reports  to  the  kings 
even  in  later  days  were  always  based  upon  a  consultation  of 
some  series  of  tablets.  Individual  judgment,  both  in  compil- 
ing a  series  and  in  interpreting  phenomena,  must  at  all  times 
have  played  some  part.  The  reports  and  the  series  also  embody 
to  some  extent  the  results  of  experience  not  previously  put  to 
writing;  but  these  considerations  do  not  alter  the  general 
proposition  set  forth  in  this  chapter  as  to  the  practical  purpose 
served  by  the  omen  series  as  well  as  by  the  reports,  and  the 
pragmatic  origin  of  both. 

The  importance  of  eclipses  gave  to  omens  connected  with 
such  events  a  special  significance.  Eclipses,  however,  were  after 
all  rare  events,  and  while  because  of  their  rarity  they  always 
portended  something  of  great  moment,  still  the  ordinary  phe- 
nomena were  the  ones  that  had  to  be  studied  by  the  astrologers 
with  sreat  care  in  order  to  obtain  a  rational  view  of  the  relation- 
ship  between  the  phenomena  of  nature  and  the  fate  of  the  indi- 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  369 

vidual  or  of  the  state.  Again,  eclipses,  as  a  general  thing, 
pointed  to  a  public  disaster  of  some  kind,  and  this  recognized 
belief  lightened  the  task  of  the  priest  considerably  in  this 
instance.  In  the  case  of  ordinary  phenomena  it  was  much 
more  difficult  to  find  the  connection  between  cause  and  effect  ; 
and  in  the  vast  majority  of  instances  when  kings  and  individ- 
uals sought  the  temples  for  omens,  the  heavens  must  have 
presented  a  normal  and  not  an  abnormal  appearance. 

What  answers  were  the  priests  to  give  to  the  questions  put 
to  them  ?  Was  it  a  favorable  period  for  undertaking  a  military 
campaign?  On  what  day  should  the  king  set  out?  Was  the 
day  fixed  on  by  the  council  of  war  favorable  for  a  battle  ?  On 
what  day  should  the  foundation  for  the  temple  or  palace  be 
laid  ?  Will  the  sick  person  recover  ?  Should  one  set  out  on  a 
proposed  journey?    Is  the  day  fixed  for  a  marriage  auspicious? 

Recognizing  by  experience  that  the  same  thing  undertaken 
at  different  times  turned  out  differently,  in  the  one  case  being 
brought  to  a  successful  issue,  in  the  other  followed  by  mis- 
fortune, the  conclusion  was  forced  upon  the  popular  mind  (as 
already  set  forth  above)  that  the  day  on  which  something  was 
done  or  was  to  be  done  was  of  great  moment. 

But  how  did  one  day  differ  from  the  other  ?  That  was  the 
question  for  the  priests  to  determine.  During  the  hours  that 
the  sun  was  in  control,  the  clouds  produced  constant  changes 
in  the  appearance  of  the  heavens,  but  because  of  their  irreg- 
ular character,  these  changes  impressed  the  Babylonians  less 
forcibly  than  the  striking  changes  that  the  nights  showed. 
The  planets  and  stars  never  appeared  alike  on  two  successive 
nights.  There  was  always  some  change  in  the  position  of  some 
of  the  heavenly  bodies.  To  these  changes,  then,  the  priests 
directed  their  attention.  In  the  variations  presented  by  the 
heavens  at  night  they  saw  a  potent  reason  for  the  varying 
results  produced  by  the  same  act  undertaken  at  different 
times. 


370  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

If  it  made  a  difference  at  what  moment  something  was  done, 
that  difference  could  only  be  determined  by  observing  the  vari- 
ations that  one  night  presented  from  the  other.  The  astrologers 
observed  that  many  of  the  stars  were,  or  seemed  to  be,  fixed 
in  their  orbits;  others  rose  and  set  like  the  sun  and  moon,  and 
appeared  in  different  parts  of  the  heavens  at  different  seasons 
of  the  year.  The  regularity  of  these  changes  made  it  possible 
to  study  the  course  of  these  stars,  and  as  knowledge  progressed, 
to  determine  also  in  advance  where  a  particular  body  would  be 
seen  at  a  certain  time. 

The  planets  accordingly  were  the  bodies  to  which  the 
astrologers  especially  directed  their  attention.  It  has  been 
conjectured  with  some  show  of  probability  that  one  of  the 
purposes  served  by  the  lofty  seven-staged  towers,1  which  were 
attached  to  many  of  the  great  temples,  was  for  the  better  obser- 
vation of  the  movements  of  the  planets.  The  official  standing 
of  the  astrologers  is  indicated  by  the  references  in  texts  to  the 
'  court  astrologer.' 

However  this  may  be,  there  is  no  doubt  that  at  all  the  large 
temples  and  at  many  of  the  smaller  ones,  observations  of  the 
planets  were  recorded. 

The  collection  of  these  observations  formed  the  manuals  for 
the  priests  in  answering  many  of  the  questions  put  to  them. 
Each  of  the  great  planets  was  identified  (by  a  process  of  thought 
that  we  will  have  occasion  to  describe)  with  some  deity,  though 
this  was  not  clone  until  the  attempt  was  also  made  to  gather 
the  astrological  knowledge  of  the  day  into  some  kind  of  con- 
sistent system.  Our  own  names  of  the  planets,  as  handed 
down  to  us  through  the  Greeks  and  Romans,  are  but  the  clas- 
sical equivalents  of  the  Babylonian  deities.2 

Jupiter  is  Marduk,  the  head  of  the  Babylonian  pantheon. 
Venus  is  the    Babylonian   Ishtar.     Mars  is  Nergal,  the  god  of 

i  See  the  chapter  on  "  The  Temples  ol  Babylonia  and  Assyria." 
'-'■  See  Jensen,  Kosmologie  der  Babylonier,  pp.  134-139. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF   OMENS.  371 

war  and  pestilence.     Mercury  is  Nabu,  the  god  of  wisdom  and 
the  messenger  of  the  gods,  and  Saturn  is  Ninib. 

Among  the  astrological  texts  preserved,  Ishtar- Venus  figures 
more  prominently  than  the  other  planets.  The  appearance  of 
Ishtar  during  each  month  and  for  various  days  of  the  month 
was  noted,  and  then  interpreted,  partly  on  the  basis  of  past 
experience,  but  also  by  other  factors  that  for  the  most  part 
escape  us.  A  tablet,  furnishing  omens  derived  from  the  posi- 
tion of  the  planet  Venus  and  which  may  belong  to  the  series 
'  Illumination  of  Bel,'  deals  with  the  periods  of  the  disappear- 
ance of  Venus  as  evening  star,  and  her  reappearance  as  morn- 
ing star,  and  vice  versa} 

In  the  month  of  Tammuz  (4th  month)  Venus  disappeared  on  the  25th 
day  at  sunset,  for  seven  days  was  hidden,'2  and  on  the  2d  day  of  Ab  (5th 
month)  was  seen  at  sunrise.     Rains  in  the  land.     Destruction  of 3  .  .   . 

In  the  month  of  Adar  (12th  month)  Venus  disappeared  on  the  25th  day 
at  sunrise.     For  a  year  (?)  weapons  are  wielded4  (?),  gold3  .  .  . 

In  the  month  of  Marcheshwan  (Sth  month),  10th  day,  Venus  disappeared 
at  sunrise,  for  two  months  and  six  days  was  hidden,  and  reappeared  on  the 
1 6th  day  of  Tebet  (10th  month).     There  will  be  abundant  crops. 

In  the  month  of  Elul  (6th  month),  26th  day,  Venus  disappeared  at  sun- 
set, for  eleven  days  was  hidden,  and  in  the  second5  Elul,  on  the  7th  day, 
reappeared  at  sunset.     The  heart  of  the  land  is  good.6 

In  the  month  of  Nisan  (1st  month),  on  the  9th  day,  Venus  disappeared 
at  sunset  3  (?),  and  for  five  months  and  sixteen  days  was  hidden,  and  re- 
appeared in  the  month  of  Elul  (6th  month),  on  the  25th  day,  at  sunset. 
The  heart  of  the  land  is  good. 

In  the  month  of  Ab  (5th  month),  10th  day,  Venus  disappeared  at 
sunset7  (?),  and  for  two8  months  and  sixteen  days  was  hidden,  and 
reappeared  on  the  26th  day  of  Marcheshwan  (Sth  month).  Rains  in 
the  land. 

In  the  month  of  Nisan,  2d  day,  Venus  appeared  at  sunrise.  There  will 
be  distress  in  the  land. 

1  I1IR.  63.  6  Intercalated  month. 

2  Lit.,  "  delayed  in  the  heavens."  6  /Aj  ;t  is  a  g00d  sjgn. 

3  Tablet  defective.  7  Tablet  defective. 

4  **;  there  is  war.  8  Text  erroneously  '  one  month.' 


372  BABYLOA  fAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

If  Venus  is  stationary  to  the  6th  day  of  Kislev  (yth  month)  at  sunrise, 
and  then  disappears  on  the  7th  day  of  Kislev,  and  is  hidden  for  three 
months  to  reappear  on  the  8th  day  of  Adar  (12th  month)  at  sunset,  it  indi- 
cates that  king  against  king  will  send  hostility. 

In  the  month  of  Kislev  (9th  month),  10th  day,  Venus  appeared  at  sun- 
rise. Lack  of  corn  and  hay  in  the  land.  If  she  remains  in  position  up  to 
the  14th  day  of  Ab  (5th  month)  at  sunrise,  and  then  on  the  15th  day 
disappears,  and  for  three  months  is  hidden,  and  on  the  15th  day  of  March- 
eshwan  (8th  month)  rises  at  sunset,  the  crops  of  the  land  will  be  good. 

A  colophon  informs  us  that  the  tablet  in  question  embodies  a 
series  of  observations  of  the  movements  of  Venus  recorded  by 
Babylonian  scholars.  It  was  evidently  the  purpose  of  the 
compilers  to  commit  to  writing  as  many  variations  in  the 
appearance  and  disappearance  of  the  planet  as  possible.  The 
omens  must  either  have  been  furnished  at  one  time  or  they 
embody  actual  occurrences  that  were  observed  in  connection 
with  the  observation  recorded.  In  either  case  the  omens  served 
as  guides  for  the  priests  in  their  replies  to  inquiries.  An  omen 
once  furnished  or  an  event  once  observed  as  having  taken 
place  under  given  conditions  of  a  planet  served  for  all  times. 

The  omen  lists  for  the  other  planets  were  arranged  on  the 
same  principle  as  the  Venus  list.  The  motions  of  the  planets 
were  carefully  observed.  It  was  noted  whether  they  rose  bril- 
liantly or  with  a  pale  color.  Their  position  towards  other  stars 
was  determined,  and  much  more  the  like.  Besides  the  planets, 
various  stars  that  were  distinguished  by  their  brilliancy,  as  Sirius, 
Antares,  Regulus,  and  also  comets,  were  included  in  the  sphere 
of  astronomical  calculations,  and  furnished  omens  to  the  priests. 

These  omens,  so  far  as  we  may  judge  from  the  texts  at  pres- 
ent published,  all  hinge  around  the  same  series  of  events  that 
are  referred  to  in  the  illustrations  given,  —  rain,  crops,  war,  dis- 
tress, the  country's  prosperity,  the  king's  welfare  or  misfortune. 

Another  piece  of  evidence  is  thus  furnished  for  the  hypothe- 
sis that  these  lists  are  based  upon  reports  made  to  royal  masters, 
and  that  the  reports  again  are  obtained  from  the  lists  prepared 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  373 

for  public  and  political  needs.  We  must  not,  however,  conclude 
from  this  fact  that  the  observation  of  heavenly  phenomena  was 
of  no  significance  at  all  for  the  private  individual,  but  only  that 
the  position  of  the  king  and  the  general  welfare  of  the  country 
were  regarded  of  larger  moment. 

Just  as  the  gods  were  held  responsible  chiefly  for  the  larger 
affairs  of  this  world,  the  trifles  being  relegated  to  the  spirits 
and  demons,1  so  the  planets  and  stars,  as  symbols  of  the  gods, 
were  regarded  as  auguries  for  the  chief  of  the  country  rather 
than  for  the  miscellaneous  population,  and  more  for  the  general 
welfare  than  for  individual  prosperity.  The  individual  shared 
in  the  omen  furnished,  in  so  far  as  his  well-being  was  dependent 
upon  such  important  contingencies  as  whether  there  was  to  be 
war  or  peace,  good  crops  or  bad.  A  population  so  largely 
engaged  in  agriculture  as  the  Babylonians  were,  would  be  satis- 
fied if  they  could  be  reassured  as  to  the  outcome  of  their  work 
in  the  fields.  Ihering  has  properly  emphasized  the  strong 
hold  that  the  conception  of  communal  interests  obtained  in 
Babylonia.2  This  conception  is  reflected  in  the  prominence 
given  to  public  and  political  affairs  in  the  omen  lists  and 
'omen'  reports.  Agriculture  was  the  primal  factor  in  producing 
this  conception  in  the  south;  war  which  united  the  population, 
even  though  military  service  was  forced  upon  the  people,  was 
the  second  factor ;  and  in  Assyria,  where  military  expeditions 
occupied  a  much  larger  share  of  public  attention  than  in 
Babylonia,  war  became  the  chief  factor  in  keeping  alive  the 
thought  of  national  solidarity. 

Omen  Calendars. 

There  was  still  another  reason  why  the  king  and  with  him 
public  affairs,  received  such  prominence  in  the  omen  texts.     As 

1  See  above,  p.  183. 

2  See  Ihering,  Vorgeschichte  der  Indo-Europacr,  pp.  182  seq. 


374  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

the  nation's  ruler  he  was  not  only  an  important  personage  by 
virtue  of  his  power  over  his  subjects,  but  also  by  virtue  of  his 
close  relationship  to  the  gods.  The  theory  of  the  '  divine  right 
of  kings  '  was  rigidly  adhered  to  in  Babylonia  and  Assyria. 
When  the  monarchs  speak  of  themselves  as  nominated  by  this 
or  that  god  to  be  the  ruler  of  t?he  country,  this  was  not  a  mere 
phrase.  The  king  was  the  vicar  of  the  deity  on  earth,  his  rep- 
resentative who  enjoyed  divine  favor  and  who  was  admitted  into 
the  confidence  of  the  gods.  In  earlier  days  priestly  functions 
were  indissolubly  associated  with  kingship.  The  oldest  kings 
of  Assyria  call  themselves  '  the  priests  of  Ashur,'  and  it  is  only 
as  with  the  growth  of  political  power  a  differentiation  of  func- 
tions takes  place  that  the  priest,  as  the  mediator  between  the 
deity  and  his  subjects,  becomes  distinct  from  the  secular  ruler. 

The  further  development  of  this  process  led  to  the  curious 
but  perfectly  natural  anomaly  that  the  king,  from  being  origi- 
nally identical  with  the  priest,  becomes  in  large  measure  depend- 
ent upon  the  latter  in  his  relations  to  the  gods.  In  the  more 
advanced  stages  of  the  religious  cult,  the  king  requires  the  ser- 
vice of  a  priest  to  act  as  mediator  between  himself  and  the  gods, 
precisely  as  all  of  his  subjects  need  this  mediatorship.  The 
king  cannot  obtain  an  oracle  directly.  He  must  send  to  the 
temple  and  inquire  of  the  priests.  The  priest  must  intercede 
for  the  king  when  he  throws  himself  upon  the  mercy  of  an 
angered  god  or  goddess.  The  royal  sacrifice  is  not  acceptable 
unless  the  priest  stands  by  the  side  of  the  king. 

Still  there  are  traces  left  of  the  old  direct  relationship 
existing  between  the  king  and  his  gods.  A  god  sometimes 
reveals  himself  directly  to  a  ruler.  Ishtar  appears  in  a  dream 
and  gives  him  directions.  Another  and  more  significant  trace 
of  this  older  relationship  is  to  be  found  in  the  importance 
assigned  to  the  religious  conduct  of  the  king.  If  an  individual 
offends  a  deity,  the  individual  alone  suffers,  or  at  the  most  his 
family  is  involved  in  the  punishment  indicted;  but  if  the  king 


VARIOUS   CLASSES  OF  OMENS.  375 

sins,  the  whole  country  suffers,  and  correspondingly  the  king's 
atonement  and  reconciliation  with  the  gods  is  essential  for 
dispelling  some  national  calamity.  Frazer  has  shown  by  his 
admirable  investigations1  that  this  view  of  kingship  is  common 
to  many  nations  of  antiquity.  While  it  did  not  lead  among 
the  Babylonians  and  Assyrians  to  that  extreme  which  is  best 
illustrated  by  Japan,  where  the  Mikado,  by  virtue  of  his  divine 
right,  is  hedged  in  with  prescribed  formalities  that  make  him 
almost  a  prisoner,  so  closely  is  he  watched  by  his  attendants 
lest  any  mistake  be  made  by  him  which  is  certain  to  entail 
serious  consequences  for  the  country,  still  the  priests  had  to 
see  to  it  that  the  rulers  performed  their  duties  towards  the  gods 
in  the  prescribed  manner  and  with  all  possible  accuracy. 

The  conduct  of  the  king  was  of  special  significance  at  periods 
when  for  some  reason  or  other,  the  gods  were  not  favorably 
disposed.  Partly  on  the  basis  of  actual  observation  that  eclipses 
(which  were  especially  feared)  had  occurred  on  certain  days  of 
the  month,  partly  as  a  consequence  of  the  belief  that  the  change 
in  the  moon's  phase  augured  something  good  or  evil  for  human- 
ity, and  in  part  perhaps  through  the  coincidence  that  on  a  certain 
day  of  the  month,  mishaps  of  some  kind  had  occurred  several 
times,  certain  months  and  certain  days  of  each  month  were 
regarded  as  favorable,  while  others  were  unfavorable.  Some 
months  and  some  days  were  suitable  for  dedicating  a  building, 
others  were  not.  On  some  days  an  oracle  might  be  sought,  on 
others  not.  Some  days  were  days  of  rejoicing,  on  others  again 
mourning  was  appropriate.  Advantage  had  to  be  taken  of  the 
favorable  days  to  keep  the  deity  in  good  humor,  and  it  was 
equally  important  on  the  unfavorable  ones  to  exercise  great 
care  not  to  do  aught  which  might  arouse  the  anger  of  a  god, 
ready  to  be  incensed.  It  is  the  king  who  can  best  accomplish 
the  one  thing  and  avoid  the  other.  To  him,  as  standing  nearer 
the  deity  than  any  private  individual,  the  country  looked  for 

1  See  The  Golden  Bough,  passim. 


376  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION 

safety  and  protection.  Calendars  were  prepared  for  each 
month  of  the  year,  in  which  the  peculiar  character  of  each  day 
was  noted  and  instructions  added  what  was  to  be  done  on  each 
day.  These  instructions  all  have  reference  to  the  king  and  to 
the  king  alone.  A  complete  calendar  for  the  intercalated  month 
of  Elul  has  heen  preserved.1  It  may  serve  as  an  example  of  the 
branch  of  the  omen  literature  to  which  it  belongs. 

The  thirty  days  of  each  month  are  taken  up  in  succession. 
The  deity  to  which  each  day  is  sacred  is  indicated,  and  various 
sacrifices  or  precautions  prescribed. 

A  curious  feature  of  this  calendar  was  that,  since  it  was  the 
hope  to  make  every  day  '  favorable,'  each  day  was  called  so, 
even  when  it  is  evident  that  it  was  not. 

For  the  ist  clay  of  Elul  the  second,2  sacred  to  Ami  and  Bel,  a  favorable 
day.  When  the  moon  makes  its  appearance  in  this  month,  the  king  of 
many  peoples  brings  his  gift,  a  gazelle  together  with  fruit,  .  .  .  his  gift  to 
Shamash,  lord  of  the  countries,  and  to  Sin,  the  great  god,  he  gives.  Sacri- 
fices he  offers,  and  his  prayer  to  his  god  3  is  acceptable. 

On  the  2d  day  sacred  to  goddesses,  a  favorable  day.  The  king  brings 
his  gift  to  Shamash,  the  lord4  of  countries.  To  Sin,  the  great  gocl,  he 
offers  sacrifices.     His  prayer  to  the  gocl  is  acceptable. 

( >n  the  3d  day,  a  day  of  supplication  to  Marduk  and  Sarpanitum,  a 
favorable  day.  At  night,  in  the  presence  of  Marduk  and  Ishtar,5  the  king 
brings  his  gift.    Sacrifices  he  is  to  offer  so  that  his  prayer  may  be  acceptable. 

On  the  6th  day,  sacred  to  Ramman  and  Belit,6  a  favorable  day.  The 
king,  with  prayer  and  supplication  (?),  at  night  in  the  presence  of  Ramman. 
offers  his  gift.    Sacrifices  he  is  to  bring  so  that  his  prayer  may  be  acceptable. 

(  )n  the  7th  day,  supplication  to  Marduk  and  Sarpanitum,  a  favorable  day 

1  IV  Rawlinson,  pis.  32,  33. 

2  I.e.,  the  intercalated  Elul.  After  the  6th  month  (Elul)  and  after  the  12th  (Adar), 
a  month  was  intercalated  at  certain  intervals  in  order  to  bring  the  solar  and  lunar 
years  into  conjunction. 

8  Lit., '  raising  of  his  hand  to  a  god  '  —  the  attitude  in  prayer. 

4  Text  erroneously  '  mistress.' 

5  Here  and  elsewhere  Ishtar  is  used  in  a  generic  sense  for  '  chief  goddess';  in  the 
Dresent  case  Sarpanitum.     See  above,  pp.  82,  151,  206. 

6  '  Belit.  as  '  mistress'  in  general. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES  OF  OMENS.  377 

[sc.  may  it  be).  An  evil  day.  The  shepherd  of  many  nations  is  not  to  eat 
meat  roasted  by  the  fire,  or  any  food  prepared  by  the  fire.  The  clothes  of 
his  body  he  is  not  to  change,  fine  dress  (?)  he  is  not  to  put  on.  Sacrifices 
he  is  not  to  bring,  nor  is  the  king  to  ride  in  his  chariot.  He  is  not  to  hold 
court  nor  is  the  priest  to  seek  an  oracle  for- him  in  the  holy  of  holies.1  The 
physician  is  not  to  be  brought  to  the  sick  room.2  The  day  is  not  suitable 
for  invoking  curses.3  At  night,  in  the  presence  of  Marduk  and  Ishtar,  the 
king  is  to  bring  his  gift.  Then  he  is  to  offer  sacrifices  so  that  his  prayer 
may  be  acceptable. 

This  7  th  day,  it  will  be  observed,  is  expressly  called  an  evil 
day.  It  is  evident,  therefore,  that  the  phrase  '  favorable  day  ' 
in  the  first  line  expresses  a  hope  and  not  a  fact,  or  is  added  to 
indicate  the  manner  in  which  the  day  can  be  converted  into  a 
favorable  one.  Just  as  the  7th  day,  so  the  14th,  21st,  and  28th 
are  called  evil  days,  and  the  same  ceremonies  are  prescribed 
for  the  king  on  these  days.  These  days  were  evidently  chosen 
as  corresponding  to  the  phases  of  the  moon.  But  besides 
these  four  days,  a  fifth,  namely,  the  19th,  is  singled  out  in  the 
same  fashion.  The  comparison  with  the  Biblical  Sabbath  nat- 
urally suggests  itself.  The  choice  of  the  7  th  day  and  of  the 
corresponding  ones  rests,  of  course,  in  both  instances  upon  the 
lunar  calendar,  and  there  is  also  this  similarity  between  the  Sab- 
bath of  the  Hebrews  and  the  •  evil  day  '  of  the  Babylonians, 
that  the  precautions  prescribed  in  the  Pentateuchal  codes  — 
against  kindling  fires,  against  leaving  one's  home,  against  any 
productive  labor  —  point  to  the  Hebrew  Sabbath  as  having 
been  at  its  origin  an 'inauspicious  day,' on  which  it  was  dan- 
gerous to  show  oneself  or  to  call  the  deity's  attention  to  one's 
existence.  Despite  the  attempts  made  to  change  this  day  to 
one  of  'joy,'  as  Isaiah  would  have  it,4  the  Hebrew  Sabbath  con- 
tinued to  retain  for  a  long  time  as  a  trace  of  its  origin,  a  rather 
severe  and  sombre  aspect. 

1  Lit., '  place  of  secrecy,'  the  reference  being  to  that  portion  of  the  temple  where 
the  god  sat  enthroned.  3  I.e.,  upon  one's  enemies. 

-  I.e.,  of  the  palace.  *  Isaiah,  lviii.  13. 


378  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION 

A  striking  difference,  however,  between  the  Babylonian  and  the 
Hebrew  rites  is  the  absence  in  the  latter  of  the  theory  that  the 
atonement  of  a  single  individual  suffices  for  the  community.  The 
precautions  prescribed  for  the  Sabbath  are  binding  upon  every 
one.  Emphasis  is  laid  in  the  Pentateuch  upon  the  fact  that  the 
whole  people  is  holy,  whereas  among  the  iJabylonians  the  king 
alone  is  holy.  He  alone  is  to  abstain  from  his  ordinary  acts, 
to  conduct  himself  on  the  evil  day  with  becoming  humility,  to 
put  on  no  fineries,  not  to  indulge  in  dainty  food,1  not  to  appear 
in  royal  state,  neither  to  appeal  to  the  gods  (for  they  will  not 
hear  them),  nor  even  to  interfere  with  their  workings  by  calling 
in  human  aid  against  the  demon  of  disease,  who  may  have  been 
sent  as  the  messenger  of  one  of  the  gods.  It  is  only  at  the 
close  of  the  day  that  he  can  bring  a  sacrifice  which  will  be 
acceptable.  The  king,  by  observing  these  precautions,  insures 
the  welfare  of  his  people.  The  gods  cared  little  for  individual 
piety,  but  they  kept  a  jealous  eye  on  their  earthly  representative. 
His  appeals  were  heard  if  properly  presented  and  if  presented 
at  the  right  time,  but  woe  to  the  people  whose  king  has  aroused 
the  divine  anger.  Just  as  his  acts  of  penitence  have  a  representa- 
tive character,  so  the  gifts  and  sacrifices  and  supplications  men- 
tioned in  the  calendar  are  offered  by  the  king  on  behalf  of  the 
whole  people. 

For  the  remaining  days  of  Elul,  (he  ordinances  have  much 
the  same  character  as  those  instanced.  The  variation  consists 
chiefly  in  the  god  or  gods  to  whom  the  days  are  sacred.  Now 
it  is  Nabu  and  his  consort  Tashmitum -- on  the  4th,  8th,  and 
17th  days  —  to  whom  gifts  and  prayers  are  brought ;  again  Ninib 
and  his  consort  Gula,  on  the  9th,2 — or  Gula  alone,  on  the 
19th.  To  Marduk  and  Sarpanitum  the  16th  day  is  assigned, 
besides  the  3d  and  7th  days  as  above  set  forth;  to  Ramman  and 
his  consort  the  6th,  to  the  old  Bel  and  Belit  the  5th,  the  12th,  the 

1  Meat,  just  as  wine,  was  considered  at  all  times  a  symbol  of  joy  in  the  Orient. 

2  Perhaps  also  the  24th. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF   OMENS.  379 

25th,  and  to  Nergal  and  Bau  the  27th.  At  times  two  male 
deities  are  in  association.  So  Anu  and  Bel  for  the  1st  and  the 
30th  day,  Ea  and  Nergal  for  the  28th,  Sin  and  Shamash  for  the 
iSth,  20th,  21st,  and  22d,  or  two  goddesses,  as  Tashmitum  and 
Sarpanitum,  or  a  god  alone,  as  Ea  for  the  26th,  or  Sin  alone  for 
the  13th,  and  once  —  the  29th  day —  Sin  and  Shamash  are  com- 
bined with  the  miscellaneous  group  of  Igigi  and  Anunnaki.  All 
the  great  gods  are  thus  represented  in  the  calendar.  The  basis 
on  which  the  days  are  assigned  still  escapes  us.  It  is  hard  to 
believe  that  any  strict  uniformity  existed  in  this  respect  in  the 
cults  attached  to  the  various  Babylonian  temples.  Preference 
would  be  shown  in  each  center  to  the  chief  god  worshipped 
there,  while  to  others  would  be  assigned  a  position  correspond- 
ing to  some  theological  system  devised  by  the  priests.  Uni- 
formity and  consistency  are  two  elements  that  must  not  be 
looked  for  in  the  omen  literature  of  any  people.  The  very  fact 
that  omens  have  some  rational  basis,  namely,  observation  and 
experience,  is  the  very  reason  why  the  omen  lists  and  omen  cal- 
endars of  one  place  should  differ  from  those  of  another,  and  pre- 
cisely to  the  same  degree  that  observation  and  experience  differ. 

The  intercalated  months,  by  virtue  of  their  extraordinary 
character,  had  perhaps  a  special  significance,  but  every  day  of 
the  year  had  an  importance  of  some  kind.  This  is  shown  by  a 
Babylonian  calendar,  fortunately  preserved  in  great  part,1  in 
which  every  day  of  the  year  is  included,  and  either  its  character 
noted  or  some  precautions  prescribed.  The  indications  in  this 
calendar  are  marked  by  their  brevity,  and  impress  one  as  mem- 
oranda, intended  as  a  guide  to  the  priests. 

The  calendar  consists  of  twelve  columns.  At  the  head  of 
each  column  stands  the  name  of  one  of  the  months.  One  or, 
at  the  most,  two  lines  are  devoted  to  each  day  of  the  month, 
the  days  being  ranged  in  succession  from  one  to  thirty.  For  a 
series  of  days  in  the  2d  month  the  indications  are: 

1  V  Rawlinson,  pis.  4S,  49. 


3S0  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

2 1 st  day,  hostility. 

22d  day,  judgment  favorable,  invoking  of  curses. 

23d  day,  heart  not  good. 

24th  day,  gladness  of  heart. 

25th  day,  wife  not  to  be  approached,  heart  not  good. 

26th  day,  secret. 

Such  indications  it  is  evident  are  intelligible  only  to  the 
initiated.  With  the  help  of  the  more  complete  calendars,  such 
as  the  one  above  explained,  we  can  in  most  cases  determine 
what  is  meant  by  these  memoranda.  A  note  like  '  hostility  '  is 
an  omen  that  the  gods  are  unfavorably  inclined  on  that  day. 
The  'judgment '  referred  to  on  the  2 2d  day  is  the  oracle.  The 
day  in  question  is  suitable  for  obtaining  a  response  to  a  ques- 
tion put  to  the  deity,  and  a  favorable  occasion  for  invoking 
curses  upon  the  enemy.  It  will  be  recalled  that  the  7th  day  of 
the  second  intercalated  Elul  is  put  down  as  one  when  it  is  not 
advisable  to  secure  the  ill  will  of  the  god  against  the  enemy. 
An  expression  like  '  heart  not  good  '  is  explained  by  the  con- 
trast '  heart  glad.'  The  23d  day  of  the  month  is  a  day  of  sor- 
row, the  24th  one  on  which  one  may  be  cheerful  without  arousing 
the  jealousy  of, the  gods  or  demons.  The  25th  is  again  an 
unfavorable  day  in  which,  as  a  precaution,  sexual  intercourse  is 
prohibited.  Lastly,  the  word  rendered  '  secret  ' 1  is  the  same 
one  that  we  came  across  in  the  precautions  prescribed  for  the 
7th  day  of  the  second  Elul,  where  we  are  told  that  the 
priest  is  not  to  enter  the  '  secret  '  place.  This  term  appears  to 
describe  the  '  holy  of  holies  '  in  the  Babylonian  temples  where 
the  oracles  were  obtained.  The  single  word  '  secret '  was  a 
sufficient  indication  for  the  priest  that  on  the  clay  in  question 
he  might  enter  the  mysterious  chamber  of  the  temple  without 
trepidation. 

Many  of  the  days  of  the  year  are  simply  set  down  as 
'favorable  '  or  '  unfavorable,'  while  others  were  noted  as  days 

1  The  plural  is  used,  but  in  a  collective  sense. 


VARIOUS  CLASSES  OF  OMENS.  3S1 

portending 'distress,'  'trouble,"  tears,"  injury,"  everything  favor- 
able,' '  darkness,'  '  moon  obscured,'  and  the  like.  Of  special 
interest  are  the  prohibitions  regarding  food  on  certain  days. 
On  the  9th  day  of  the  2d  month  "fish  is  not  to  be  eaten  or 
sickness  will  ensue."  Swine's  meat  is  forbidden  on  the  30th 
day  of  the  5th  month,  and  in  this  case  the  particular  kind  of 
sickness  —  disease  of  the  joints  —  is  specified  that  will  ensue 
in  case  of  disobedience.  On  another  day,  the  25th  of  the  7th 
month,  beef  as  well  as  pork  is  forbidden,  while  on  the  10th  clay 
of  the  8th  month  and  the  27  th  day  of  the  6th  month,  dates  are 
forbidden  as  a  precaution  against  eye  disease.  One  is  not  to 
cross  a  stream1  on  the  20th  day  of  the  5th  month;  on  certain 
days  one  is  not  to  sell  grain;  other  days  are  again  noted  as 
specially  favorable  for  military  movements. 

Some  of  the  precautions  prescribed  in  this  calendar  may  have 
been  meant  for  the  populace  in  general,  such  as  the  order  not 
to  cross  a  stream  or  to  strike  a  bargain.  The  belief  in  lucky 
and  unlucky  days  has  a  distinct  popular  flavor,  but  it  is  doubt- 
ful whether  the  ordinary  public  consulted  the  priests,  as  a  gen- 
eral thing,  in  order  to  find  out  what  days  were  lucky  and  what 
not.  It  is  more  plausible  to  assume  that  the  priests  embodied 
in  their  official  calendars  some  of  the  notions  that  arose  among 
the  people,  and  gave  to  them  an  official  sanction. 

There  are  a  considerable  number  of  references  to  the  king  in 
the  complete  calendar  under  consideration,  and  we  are  permitted 
to  assume,  therefore,  that  the  calendar  served  as  a  further  guide 
for  the  priests  in  their  instructions  to  the  king.  The  allusion 
to  oracles,  curses,  and  weapons  points  in  this  same  direc- 
tion, and  when,  as  in  a  number  of  instances,  a  day  is  described 
as  one  on  which  Shamash  or  some  other  god  is  'angry/ 
it  is  in  all  probabilities  against  the  ruler  rather  than  against 
private  individuals  that  the  god's  displeasure  has  been  mani- 
fested.    A   similar    official    and   public  character  is  borne  by 

1  The  Euphrates  or  Tigris  is  no  doubt  meant. 


382  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

another  calendar,  where  months  alone  are  indicated  and  their 
significance  interpreted.1  The  twelve  months  are  arranged  in 
as  many  columns.  Under  each  column  the  indications  '  favor- 
able '  or  '  not '  are  entered,  while  at  the  right  end  of  the  tablet 
the  specifications  are  added  for  what  undertakings  the  month  is, 
or  is  not,  favorable.  One  of  these  specifications  is  "  the  soldiery 
to  make  an  attack  upon  a  hostile  city,"  and  upon  referring  to  the 
list  of  months,  we  learn  that  the  2d,  6th,  7th,  8th,  and  12th 
months  are  favorable  for  such  an  undertaking,  but  the  others 
are  '  not.'  Again,  the  1st,  3d,  4th,  6th,  8th,  9th,  10th,  and  1  ith 
are  ' favorable  '  for  "the  entrance  of  any  army  upon  foreign 
soil,"  but  the  remainder  '  not.'  The  other  specifications  refer 
likewise  to  the  movements  of  the  armies.  Such  a  calendar  was 
evidently  drawn  up  on  the  basis  of  omens,  for  a  specific  pur- 
pose, and,  we  may  add,  for  some  specific  expedition  to  serve  as 
a  guide  to  the  military  commander.  In  the  same  way,  cal- 
endars were  drawn  up  devoted  to  indications  regarding  crops 
and  for  other  purposes  of  public  interest.  To  a  more  limited 
extent,  private  affairs  are  also  touched  upon. 

To  enter  upon  a  further  discussion  of  details  is  unnecessary 
at  this  point,  and  would  carry  us  too  far  from  the  main  purpose 
of  this  chapter,  which  is  to  point  out  the  diverse  ways  in  which 
the  belief  in  omens  is  illustrated  by  the  religious  literature  of 
the  Babylonians. 

It  is  sufficient  to  have  made  clear  that  the  oracles  and  dreams, 
the  lists  of  .omens  derived  from  eclipses,  the  works  on  the 
planets  and  stars  and  the  calendars,  all  have  the  same  origin 
due  to  observation  of  coincidences,  to  past  experience,  and  to 
a  variety  of  combinations,  some  logical  and  some  fanciful,  of 
supposed  relationships  between  cause  and  effect ;  and  not  only 
the  same  origin,  but  the  lists  and  calendars  served  also  the  same 
main  purpose  of  guides  for  the  priests  in  replying  to  the  ques- 
tions put  to  them    by  their  royal   masters  and  in  forwarding 

1  III  K .  52,  no.  3,  reverse. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  3S3 

instructions  to  the  ruler  for  the  regulation  of  his  own  conduct 
so  that  he  and  his  people  might  enjoy  the  protection  and  good 
will  of  the  gods.  But  the  observation  of  the  phenomena  of  the 
heavens,  while  playing  perhaps  the  most  prominent  part  in  the 
derivation  of  omens,  was  not  the  only  resource  at  the  command 
of  the  priests  for  prognosticating  the  future.  Almost  daily, 
strange  signs  might  be  observed  among  men  and  animals, 
and  whatever  was  strange  was  of  necessity  fraught  with  some 
meaning.      It  was  the  business  of  the  priest  to  discover  that 


meaning. 


Omens  from  Terrestrial  Phenomena. 

Monstrosities,  human  and  animal,  and  all  species  of  mal- 
formations aroused  attention.  The  rarer  their  occurrence,  the 
greater  the  significance  attached  to  them.  In  addition  to  this, 
the  movements  of  animals,  the  flight  of  birds,  the  appearance 
of  snakes- at  certain  places,  of  locusts,  lions,  the  actions  of  dogs, 
the  direction  of  the  winds,  the  state  of  rivers,  and  all  possible 
accidents  and  experiences  that  men  may  encounter  in  their 
house,  in  the  street,  in  crossing  streams,  and  in  sleep  were 
observed.  Everything  in  any  way  unusual  was  important,  and 
even  common  occurrences  were  of  some  significance.  The  exten- 
sive omen  literature  thatwas  produced  in  Babylonia  is  an  indica- 
tion of  the  extent  to  which  men's  lives  were  hedged  in  by  the 
belief  in  portents.  Several  thousand  tablets  in  the  portion  of 
Ashurbanabal's  library  that  has  been  rescued  from  oblivion 
through  modern  excavations,  deal  with  omens  of  this  general 
class.  Several  distinct  series,  some  embracing  over  one  hundred 
tablets,  have  already  been  distinguished.  One  of  these  series 
deals  with  all  kinds  of  peculiarities  that  occur  in  human  infants 
and  in  the  young  of  animals;  another  with  the  things  that  may 
happen  to  a  man;  a  third  with  the  movements  of  various  ani- 
mals, and  more  the  like.      As  yet  but  a  small  portion   of  these 


384  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

tablets  have  been  published,1  but  thanks  to  the  indications 
given  by  Dr.  Bezold  in  his  great  catalogue  of  the  Kouyunjik 
Collection,  a  fair  idea  of  the  general  character  of  the  Babylonian 
omen  literature  may  be  formed.  On  what  principle  the  omens 
were  derived,  it  is  again  difficult  to  determine  in  detail,  but 
that  some  logical  principles  controlled  the  interpretations  can- 
not be  doubted. 

Jevons  has  shown  2  that  in  "  sympathetic  magic,"  —of  which 
the  interpretation  of  omens  is  an  offshoot,  —  the  same  logical 
methods  are  followed  as  in  modern  science.  The  famous 
'  Chaldean  wisdom,'  which  is  to  be  looked  for  in  this  wide- 
spread omen  literature,  would  not  have  created  so  deep  an 
impression  on  the  ancient  world,  if  the  theologians  of  the 
Euphrates  Valley,  in  incorporating  primitive  magic  in  the  official 
religion,  had  not  been  successful  in  giving  to  their  interpreta- 
tions of  occurrences  in  nature  and  in  the  animal  world,  the 
appearance,  at  least,  of  a  consistent  science. 

Taking  up  as  our  first  illustration  the  series  devoted  to  birth 
portents,  it  is  interesting  to  observe  the  system  followed  in  pre- 
senting the  various  phases  of  the  general  subject.  A  broad 
distinction  is  drawn  between  significant  phenomena  in  the  case 
of  human  infants  and  in  the  case  of  the  young  of  animals. 

About  a  dozen  tablets  are  taken  up  with  an  enumeration  of 
omens  connected  with  new-born  children,  and  one  gains  the 
impression  from  the  vast  number  of  portents  included  in  the 
lists  that  originally  every  birth  portended  something.  The  fact 
that  births  were  of  daily  occurrence  did  not  remove  the  sense 
of  mystery  aroused  by  this  sudden  appearance  of  a  new  life. 
Every  part  of  the  body  was  embraced  in  the  omens  :  the  ears, 
eyes,  mouth,  nose,  lips,  arms,  hands,  feet,  fingers,  toes,  breast, 
generatory  organs.     Attention  was  directed  to  the  shapes  of 

1  The  most  extensive  publication  of  omens  is  Hoissier's  Documents  Assyriens 
Relatifs  aux  Presages,  of  which  two  volumes  have  appeared.  Boissier's  method  of 
publication  is  not  altogethei  satisfactory. 

-  Introduction  to  the  History  of  Religions,  pp.  28-35. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  3SS 

these  various  members  and  organs.  The  ears  of  a  child  might 
suggest  the  ears  of  a  dog  or  of  a  lion  or  of  a  swine,  and  similarly 
the  nose,  mouth,  lips,  hands,  or  feet  might  present  a  peculiar 
appearance.  A  single  member  or  the  features  in  general  might 
be  small  or  abnormally  large.  All  these  peculiarities  meant 
something;  and  since  few  if  any  children  are  born  without  pre- 
senting some  peculiarities  in  some  part  of  the  body,  it  would 
seem  as  though  the  intention  of  the  compilers  of  the  series  was 
to  provide  a  complete  handbook  for  the  interpretation  of  signs 
connected  with  the  birth  of  children.  Naturally  the  total 
absence  of  some  member  of  the  body  in  case  of  the  new-born 
or  any  malformation  was  a  sign  of  especial  significance.  Hence 
we  are  told  what  was  portended  by  a  child  born  without  hands 
or  feet  or  ears  or  lips,  or  with  only  one  of  these  members,  or 
with  only  one  eye,  or  with  no  mouth  or  no  tongue,  or  with  six 
fingers  on  one  or  on  both  hands,  or  six  toes  on  one  or  on  both 
feet,  or  without  generatory  organs.1 

The  rarer  the  phenomenon,  the  greater  the  significance  is, 
as  we  have  seen,  a  general  principle  in  the  science  of  augury. 
The  birth  of  twins  accordingly  plays  an  important  role  in  the 
series.  In  fact,  the  opening  tablet  is  devoted  in  part  to  this 
phase  of  the  subject.     We  are  told,  for  example,  that 2 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  twins,  one  male  and  one  female,  it  is  an 
unfavorable  omen.  The  land  is  in  favor,3  but  that  house  (wherein  the  child 
was  born)  will  be  reduced. 

And  again, 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  twins,  and  both  are  brought  out  alive  (?),4  but 
the  right  hand  of  one  is  lacking,  the  ruler  (?)  will  be  killed  by  force,  the 
land  will  be  diminished.  .  .  . 

1  A  particularly  bad  omen.     See  IIIR.  65,  22,  obverse. 

2  Boissier,  Documents  Assyriens  Relatifs  aux  Presages,  pp.  no  sea.  Boissier  has 
published  portions  of  some  twenty  tablets  of  the  series,  ib.  pp.  110-1S1. 

3  /.t'.,  will  not  suffer. 

4  The  phrase  used  is  obscure.     My  translation  is  offered  as  a  conjecture. 


3S6  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  twins,  and  both  arc  brought  out  alive  (?),  but 
neither  of  them  have  right  hands,  the  produce  of  the  country  will  be  con- 
sumed by  the  enemy. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  twins,  and  both  are  brought  out  alive  (?),  but 
the  right  foot  of  one  is  missing,  an  enemy  will  for  one  year  disturb  the 
fixed  order  of  the  country.1 

It  will  be  observed  that  these  omens  bear  on  public  as  well  as 
private  affairs.  The  part  played  by  public  matters  in  them 
varies,  but  that  the  king  and  the  country  are  so  frequently  intro- 
duced is  an  indication  again  of  the  official  character  given  to 
these  omen  tablets.  Only  priests  whose  chief  concern  was 
with  the  court  and  the  general  welfare  would  have  been 
impelled  to  mingle  in  this  curious  way  the  fate  of  the  indi- 
vidual with  that  of  the  country  at  large.  The  birth  of  twins  in 
itself  is  an  omen  for  the  house  where  the  event  occurs;  but 
twins  that  are  monstrosities,  with  a  foot  or  a  hand  lacking, 
portend  something  of  import  to  the  general  welfare. 

The  tablet  proceeds,  after  finishing  one  phase  of  the  sub- 
ject, with  omens  to  be  derived  from  infants  whose  features 
resemble  those  of  certain  animals.  In  this  case  again  we  will 
see  that  the  mind  of  the  compiler  is  now  directed  towards  the 
fate  of  the  individual  and  again  toward  the  ruler  or  the  country. 
In  the  2d  tablet  of  the  series  we  read  that 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  a  lion's  head,2  a  strong  king  will 
rule  in  the  land. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  a  dog's  head,  the  city  in  his  dis- 
trict 8  will  be  in  distress,  and  evil  will  be  in  the  country. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth   to  a  child  with   a  swine's  head,  offspring  and 

possession  (?)  will  increase  in  that  house. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  a  bird's  head,  that  land  will  lie 
destroyed. 

>  I.e.,  an  enemy  will  keep  the  land  in  turmoil. 

2  /.,-.,  like  a  lion.     Elsewhere  the  preposition  '  like  '  is  used. 

:i  Where  the  child  is  born. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  387 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  a  serpent's  head,  for  thirty  days 
(?)  Nin-Gishzida1  will  bring  a  famine  in  the  land,  and  Gilgamesh  -  will 
rule  as  king  in  the  land. 

In  the  same  tablet 3  such  monstrosities  are  taken  up  as  chil- 
dren born  with  two  heads,  with  a  double  pair  of  eyes,  or  with 
the  eyes  misplaced,  with  two  mouths  or  more  than  two  lips. 
The  two  heads,  strange  enough,  generally  portend  good  fortune, 
though  not  invariably.  Thus  an  infant  with  two  heads  is  an 
omen  of  strength  for  the  country ;   and  again 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  two  heads,  two  mouths,  but  the 
regular  number  of  eyes,  hands,  and  feet,4  it  is  an  omen  of  vigorous  life  [for 
the  country,  but  the  son]  wiil  seize  the  king  his  father  and  kill  him. 

But 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  two  heads  and  two  mouths,  and 
the  two  hands  and  two  feet  are  between  them,5  disease  will  settle  upon  that 
city  (where  the  monstrosity  was  born). 

If  the  deformity  consists  in  the  misplacement  of  certain 
organs,  the  omen  is  invariably  bad. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  two  eyes  on  the  left  side,  it  is  a 
sign  that  the  gods  are  angry  against  the  land,  and  the  land  will  be  destroyed. 

And  again, 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  three  eyes  on  the  left  side  and 
one  on  the  right,  the  gods  will  fill  the  land  with  corpses. 

The  third  tablet  proceeds  with  other  parts  of  the  body.  It 
begins  with  a  list  of  peculiarities  observed  in  regard  to  the  ears. 
The  resemblance  of  certain  features  in  children  to  the  corre- 

1  A  solar  deity;  see  above,  p.  99.  Reference  to  minor  deities  are  frequent  in  these 
omen  texts. 

2  The  reference  appears  to  be  to  some  misfortune  that  will  be  brought  about 
through  the  solar  deity  Gilgamesh. 

3  Boissier,  Doctanents,  etc.,  pp.  1 18-120. 

4  I.e.,  only  two. 

5  Between  the  two  heads,  i.e.,  the  hands  and  feet  are  misplaced. 


388  BAB  YLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

sponding  features  of  animals  is  an  observation  made  by  many 
nations.  In  modern  times  Lavater,  it  will  be  recalled,  based 
his  study  of  human  physiognomy  in  part  upon  the  resemblance 
of  the  nose,  eyes,  mouth,  and  ears,  and  general  shape  of  the 
head  to  the  features  of  such  animals  as  the  lion,  jackass,  dog, 
and  swine.  We  may  well  believe,  therefore,  that  when  the 
Babylonians  refer  to  a  child  with  a  lion's  or  a  dog's  ear,  they 
had  in  mind  merely  a  resemblance,  but  did  not  mean  that  the 
child  actually  had  the  ear  of  a  lion  or  dog  or  the  like. 

At  times  the  connection  between  the  omen  and  its  interpre- 
tation is  quite  obvious.  In  a  portion  of  this  same  series  we 
are  told  that x 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  a  lion-like  ear,  a  mighty  king  will 
arise  in  the  land. 

It  will  be  recalled  that  a  '  lion  head  '  portends  the  same,  and 
it  is  evident  that  in  both  cases  the  lion  suggests  strength.  We 
are  in  the  presence  of  the  same  order  of  ideas  that  controls  the 
belief  in  '  sympathetic  magic'  The  corollary  to  '  like  produces 
like  '  is  '  like  means  like.'  In  other  cases,  the  logic  underlying 
the  interpretation  of  the  omen  must  be  sought  for  in  views 
connected  with  some  accompanying  feature. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  the  right  ear  missing,  the  days  of 
the  ruler  will  be  long. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  the  left  ear  missing,  distress  will 
enter  the  land  and  weaken  it. 

While  in  general  the  absence  of  any  part  of  the  body  is  a 
sign  of  distress  for  the  country  and  individual  by  a  perfectly 
natural  association  of  ideas,  yet  this  general  principle  is  modi- 
fied by  the  further  consideration  that  '  right '  is  a  good  omen 
and  '  left '  a  bad  one.      But  this  consideration  which  makes  the 

i  IIIR.  65,  no.  1. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  389 

absence  of  the  '  right '  ear  a  good  omen  may  again  be  offset  by 
the  entrance  of  a  third  factor.     So  we  are  told  that 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  a  small 1  right  ear,  the  house  or 
the  man  2  will  be  destroyed. 

The  omen  of  misfortune  in  this  case  is  the  deformity  in  the 
organ,  and  the  fact  that  the  more  important  right  ear  is 
deformed,  so  far  from  mitigating  the  force  of  the  omen,  accen- 
tuates its  consequences. 

If  a  deformed  right  ear  is  disastrous,  we  are  prepared  to 
learn  that 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  both  ears  short,  the  house  of  the 
man  will  be  utterly  rooted  out. 

No  less  than  eleven  varieties  of  deformed  ears  are  enum- 
erated. It  must  not  be  supposed,  however,  that  the  factors 
involved  in  this  omen  science  are  always  or  even  generally  so 
simple.  In  most  cases  the  connection  between  the  sign  and 
the  conclusion  drawn,  is  not  clear  to  us  because  of  the  multi- 
plicity of  factors  involved.  Further  publication  and  study  of 
omen  texts  will  no  doubt  make  some  points  clear  which  are  now 
obscure,  but  we  cannot  expect  ever  to  find  out  all  the  factors 
that  were  taken  into  account  by  the  populace  and  the  school- 
men, in  proposing  and  accepting  certain  interpretations  of  certain 
omens,  any  more  than  we  can  fathom  the  reasons  for  the  simi- 
lar superstition  found  among  other  nations3  of  antiquity  and 
modern  times.  Recognizing  certain  principles  in  some  of  the 
omens,  we  are  justified  in  concluding  that  whatever  else  deter- 
mined the  interpretation  of  omens,  caprice  did  not  enter  into 
consideration,  but  rather  an  association  of  ideas  that  escapes 

1  Abnormally  small. 

2  I.e.,  the  father  or  master. 

3  The  Egyptians  carried  the  observation  and  interpretation  of  omens  to  quite  as 
high  a  degree  as  the  Babylonians  and  Assyrians.  See,  e.g.,  Chabas,  Melanges 
Egyptologiques,  3e  serie,  tome  ii. ;  Wiedemann's  Religion  of  Ancient  Egypt,  p.  263. 


390  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

us,  simply  because  our  logic  differs  from  the  logic  of  primitive 
peoples  in  certain  important  particulars. 

The  list  of  peculiarities  occurring  in  the  case  of  babes 
continues  as  follows  : 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  whose  mouth  is  shaped  like  a  bird's, 
the  country  will  be  stirred  up. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  without  any  mouth,  the  mistress  of  the 
house  will  die. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  the  right  nostril  lacking,  misfortune 
is  portending. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  both  nostrils  lacking,  the  land  will 
witness  distress,  and  disease  will  destroy  the  house  of  the  man. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  whose  jaw  is  lacking,  the  days  of  the 
ruler  will  be  long,  but  the  house  of  the  man  will  be  destroyed. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  whose  lower  jaw  is  lacking,  the  ground 
will  not  bear  fruit  during  the  year. 

It  will  be  observed  that,  while  most  of  the  portents  are  evil, 
the  ruler  of  the  land  is  here  generally  vouchsafed  immunity. 
The  priests  had  to  be  somewhat  on  their  guard  lest  by  the  very 
terror  that  they  aroused,  the  hold  of  the  rulers  over  the  people 
might  be  loosened.  Moreover,  the  rulers  were  sufficiently 
hedged  in  by  their  positions,  as  we  have  seen,  and  were  in  no 
danger  of  regarding  themselves  as  safe  from  the  anger  of  the 
gods. 

Still  quite  frequently  even  the  king  is  involved  in  the  evil 
prophecy.  The  portion  of  the  series  dealing  with  portents 
derived  from  deformed  hands  and  feet  contains  instances  of  this 
kind. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  the  right  hand  lacking,  the  land 
advances  to  destruction. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  both  hands  lacking,  the  city  will 
witness  no  more  births,  and  the  land  will  be  utterly  destroyed. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  the  ringers  of  the  right  hand  lack- 
ing, the  ruler  will  be  captured  by  his  enemy. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  six  toes  on  the  right  foot,  through 
distress  (?),  the  house  of  the  man  will  perish. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF   OMENS.  391 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  six  very  small  toes  on  the  left  foot, 
distress  (?)  will  come  to  pass. 

If  a  woman  gives  birth  to  a  child  with  six  toes  on  the  right  foot,  some 
disaster  is  portending. 

Altogether  no  less  than  ninety  kinds  of  human  deformities  in 
the  various  parts  of  the  body  are  enumerated  and  interpreted. 

The  significance  of  the  portents  is  naturally  increased  if  the 
woman  who  gives  birth  to  a  monstrosity  happens  to  belong  to 
the  royal  house.  In  such  a  case,  the  omen  has  direct  bearings 
on  national  affairs.  The  good  or  evil  sign  affects  the  country 
exclusively.  From  a  tablet  of  this  nature,1  belonging  to  a  dif- 
ferent series  than  the  one  we  have  been  considering,  we  learn 
that  six  toes  on  the  right  foot  or  six  on  the  left  foot  mean 
defeat,  whereas  six  toes  on  both  feet  mean  victory.  Royal  twins 
were  a  good  omen,  and  so  also  a  royal  child  born  with  teeth  or 
with  hair  on  its  face  or  with  unusually  developed  features. 

The  same  desire  to  find  some  meaning  in  deviations  from 
normal  types  led  to  the  careful  observation  of  deformities  or 
peculiarities  in  the  case  of  the  young  of  domestic  animals.  In 
the  fifth  tablet  of  the  series  that  we  have  chosen  as  an  illus- 
tration, the  compiler  passes  from  babes  to  the  offspring  of 
domestic  animals.  From  the  opening  line,  which  is  all  that 
has  been  published  as  yet,2  and  which  reads: 

If  in  the  flock  3  a  dog  is  born,  weapons  will  destroy  life  and  the  king  will 
not  be  triumphant 

it  would  appear  that  the  first  subject  taken  up  was  the  anoma- 
lous unions  among  animals,  which  naturally  aroused  attention 
when  they  occurred. 

A  number  of  tablets —  at  least  seven — follow  in  which  mon- 
strosities occurring  among  the  young  of  sheep  are  noted. 

1  Lenormant,  Choix  des  Textes  Ci/nei/ormes,  no.  87. 

2  Occurring  at  the  end  of  the  fourth  tablet,  as  an  aid  for  the  correct  arrangement 
of  the  series.     IIIR.  65,  no.  1,  reverse,  1.  28. 

3  Lit.,  '  stall,'  which  includes  sheep,  oxen,  and  swine. 


392  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

The  series  passes  on  to  signs  to  be  observed  among  colts. 
From  this  point  on,  the  series  is  too  defective  (so  far  as  pub- 
lished) to  warrant  any  further  deductions ;  but  it  is  safe  to 
suppose  that,  as  the  young  of  ewes  and  mares  were  considered 
in  special  sections,  so  the  young  of  swine  and  of  cows  were 
taken  up  in  succession.  The  whole  series  would  thus  aim  to 
cover  that  section  of  the  animal  kingdom  that  concerned  man 
most,  —  his  own  offspring,  and  the  young  of  those  animals  by 
which  he  was  surrounded. 

In  these  omens  derived  from  the  young  of  domestic  animals, 
we  are  again  overwhelmed  at  the  mass  of  contingencies  included 
by  the  priests  in  their  compilations.  Just  as  in  the  case  of 
omens  derived  from  infants,  so  here  the  parts  of  the  body  are 
taken  up  one  after  the  other.  All  possible,  and  one  is  inclined 
to  add  various  impossible,  variations  from  the  normal  types  are 
noted.  The  omen  varies  as  the  female  throws  off  one,  two,  three, 
or  whatever  number  of  young  ones  up  to  ten.     For  example:1 

If  among  the  sheep,  five  young  ones  are  born,  it  is  a  sign  of  devastation 
in  the  land.     The  owner  of  the  sheep  dies,  and  his  house  is  destroyed. 

This  is  the  omen  in  the  case  that  the  litter  consists  of  five 
young  ones,  all  normal.     But  if  anomalies  occur,  as,  e.g., 

If  five  young  ones  are  born,  one  with  a  bull's  head,  one  with  a  lion's 
head,  one  with  a  dog's  head,  and  one  with  a  sheep's  head,  there  will  lie  a 
series  of  devastations  in  the  land. 

Again, 

If  seven  youngs  are  thrown  off,  three  male  and  four  female,  that  man  - 
will  perish. 

And  so  if  eight  are  born,  it  is  a  bad  sign  for  the  king  who, 
we  are  told,  "  will  be  driven  out  of  the  country  through  sedi- 
tion." 

1  Boissier,  Documents,  etc.,  pp.  132, 133. 

-  I.e.,  the  owner  of  the  stall.     A  variant  reads  '  king  '    instead  of  '  man.' 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  393 

The  variations  are  nigh  endless. 

If  in  the  flock,  young  ones  are  thrown  off  with  five  legs,  it  is  a  sign  of 
distress  in  the  land.  The  house  of  the  man  will  perish  and  his  stalls  will 
be  swept  away. 

If  the  young  ones  have  six  legs,  the  population  will  decrease  and  devas- 
tation will  settle  over  the  country. 

Having  finished  with  litters,  the  series  proceeds  to  peculiar 
marks  found  on  single  specimens  ;  lambs  that  have  a  head 
and  tail  shaped  like  a  lion  or  that  have  a  lion's  head,  and  a 
mane  like  that  of  an  ass,  or  a  head  like  a  bird's,  or  like  a  swine, 
and  so  through  a  long  and  rather  tiresome  list. 

Malformations  in  the  shape  or  position  of  members  of  the 
animal,  particularly  the  mouth,  ears,  tongue,  tail,  and  eyes,  or 
the  absence  of  any  one  or  of  several  of  these  parts  were 
fraught  with  an  importance  corresponding  to  these  symptoms 
among  new-born  babes. 

If  a  young  one  has  its  ears  on  one  side,  and  its  head  is  twisted  (?),  and 
it  has  no  mouth,  the  ruler  will  cut  off  the  supply  of  water  from  his  enemy. 

In  this  instance  the  'twisting'  and  the  absence  of  the  mouth 
appear  to  suggest  the  act  of  turning  a  canal  into  a  different 
direction,  so  as  to  isolate  a  besieged  city.  When  the  text  goes 
on  to  declare  that 

If  the  young  one  has  its  ears  at  its  neck,1  the  ruler  will  be  without 
judgment, 

it  is  the  association  of  ideas  between  '  ears  '  and  '  judgment,' 2 
that  supplies  the  link.  A  misplaced  ear  is  equivalent  to  mis- 
directed judgment. 

Consistent  with  this  interpretation,  the  next  line  informs  us 
that 

If  the  young  one  has  its  ears  below  the  neck,3  the  union  of  the  country 
is  weakened. 

1  I.e.,  misplaced. 

2  In  Babylonian,  'ear'  is  a  synonym  of  'understanding.' 

3  Still  further  misplaced. 


394  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Such  glimpses  into  the  peculiar  thought  controlling  these 
omens  are  perhaps  all  that  we  will  be  able  to  obtain  at  least  for 
a  long  time  to  come.  For  the  rest,  comparative  studies  with 
the  omens  of  the  other  nations  will  alone  serve  to  determine 
the  multitudinous  factors  involved  in  the  interpretations  of  the 
signs. 

Before  leaving  the  subject,  however,  a  few  more  illustrations 
may  be  offered.  Another  portion  of  the  same  tablet — the 
eleventh — continues  the  omens  derived  from  peculiarities  in 
the  ears  of  lambkins: 

If  the  young  one  has  no  right  ear,  the  rule  of  the  king  will  come  to  an 
end,  his  palace  will  be  uprooted,  and  the  population  of  the  city  will  be  swept 
away,  the  king  will  lose  judgment,  .  .  .  the  produce  of  the  country  will  be 
small,  the  enemy  will  cut  off  the  supply  of  water. 

If  the  left  ear  of  the  young  one  is  missing,  the  deity  will  hear  the  prayer 
of  the  king,  the  king  will  capture  his  enemy's  land,  and  the  palace  of  the 
enemy  will  be  destroyed,  the  enemy  will  lack  judgment,  the  produce  of  the 
enemy's  land  will  be  taken  away  and  everything  will  be  plundered  (?). 

If  the  right  ear  of  the  young  one  falls  off,  the  stall  1  will  be  destroyed. 

If  the  left  ear  of  the  young  one  falls  off,  the  stall  will  be  increased,  the 
stall  2  of  the  enemy  will  be  destroyed. 

If  the  right  ear  of  the  young  one  is  split  (?),  that  stall  will  be  destroyed, 
the  enemy  (?)  will  advance  against  the  city. 

If  the  left  ear  of  the  young  one  is  split  (?),  that  stall  will  be  increased, 
the  king3  will  advance  against  the  enemy's  land. 

In  all  these  cases  it  will  be  observed  that  a  defect  in  the 
right  ear  or  an  accident  happening  to  it  is  an  evil  omen, 
whereas  the  same  thing  occurrin<r  in  the  case  of  the  left  is  a 
favorable  indication.  The  greater  importance  of  the  right  side 
of  anything  evidently  suggests  in  this  case  the  interpretation 
offered,  and  yet  this  principle,  as  we  have  seen,  is  far  from 
being  of  universal  application.  It  depends  upon  what  happens 
to  the  right  ear.     Above,  we  have  seen  that  an  unusually  large 

1  Where  the  young  one  was  horn. 

-  /.,„  the  flocks. 

:i  Boissier's  text  lias  '  man,'  —  probably  an  error  for  '  king.' 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF   OMENS.  395 

ear  betokens  some  good  fortune,  and  in  the  tablet  under  con- 
sideration, illustrations  are  afforded  of  accidents  to  the  right 
ear  which  furnish  a  good  omen,  while  the  same  accident  in  the 
case  of  the  left  ear  is  regarded  as  a  bad  omen. 
Our  text  continues: 

If  the  right  ear  of  the  young  one  is  shrunk  (?),  the  house  of  the  owner 
will  prosper. 

If  the  left  ear  is  shrunk,  the  house  of  the  owner  will  perish. 
If  the  right  ear  is  torn  off,  the  house  of  the  owner  will  prosper. 
If  the  left  ear  is  torn  off,  the  house  of  the  owner  will  perish. 

But  immediately  following  this  we  have  again  an  evil  omen 
for  the  right  ear  and  a  favorable  one  for  the  left.  Three  more 
tablets  are  taken  up  with  omens  associated  with  all  manner  of 
peculiarities  in  the  formation  of  the  ears,  head,  lips,  mouth,  and 
feet  of  lambkins,  and  it  is  not  until  the*  fifteenth  tablet  of  the 
series  is  reached  that  another  subject,  the  young  of  mares,  is 
introduced. 

The  prognostications  in  the  case  of  colts  have  about  the 
same  character  as  those  in  the  case  of  lambkins.  The  same 
signs  are  singled  out  for  mention,  and  the  omens  are  not  only, 
just  as  in  the  illustrations  adduced,  evenly  divided  between  the 
fate  of  the  country  and  its  ruler,  and  of  the  owner  of  the  colt  or 
mare,  but  we  can  also  observe  a  consistent  application  of  the 
same  principles,  so  far  as  these  principles  may  be  detected. 
A  few  illustrations  will  make  this  clear:  l 

If  a  colt  has  no  right  legs,  the  house  2  will  be  destroyed. 

If  a  colt  has  no  left  legs,  the  days  of  the  ruler  will  be  long. 

If  a  colt  has  no  legs,  the  country  will  be  destroyed. 

If  a  colt  has  the  right  leg  shortened,3  .  .  .  his  stall4  will  be  destroyed. 

If  a  colt  has  the  left  leg  shortened,  the  stall 4  will  be  destroyed 

If  a  colt  has  no  hoof  on  the  right  foreleg,  the  wife  will  cause  trouble  to 
her  husband. 

1  IIIR.  65,  no.  2,  observe.  3  Lit.,  '  cut  off.' 

2  Of  the  master.  4  Of  the  owner. 


396  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

If  a  colt  has  no  hoofs  at  all,  there  will  be  dissensions  (?)  within  the 
country,  and  the  enemy  will  enter  the  ruler's  land. 

In  this  way,  twenty-one  omens  derived  from  as  many  varie- 
ties of  strange  formations  in  the  legs  of  colts  are  enumerated. 
As  in  the  case  of  lambkins,  so  for  colts,  the  appearance  of 
twins  is  endowed  with  a  special  significance. 

If  a  mare  gives  birth  to  twins,  male  and  female,  and  each  has  only  one 
eye,  the  enemy  triumphs  and  devastates  Babylonia. 

If  the  male  or  female  colt  has  a  mane  like  a  lion,  the  country  will  be 
reduced. 

If  the  male  or  female  colt  has  a  dog's  hoof,  the  country  will  be  reduced. 

If  the  male  or  female  colt  has  a  lion's  claw,  the  country  will  be  enlarged. 

If  the  male  or  female  colt  has  a  dog's  head,  the  woman's1  life  will  be 
bad.     The  country  will  be  reduced. 

If  the  male  or  female  colt  has  a  lion's  head,  the  ruler  will  be  strong. 

If  both  colts,  the  male  and  female,  resemble  lions,  the  ruler  over  his 
enemies  prevails  (?). 

If  both  colts,  male  and  female,  resemble  dogs,  the  ruler  over  his  enemy's 
country  prevails  (?). 

If  either  a  male  or  female  colt  is  born  resembling  a  lion,  the  king  will  be 
strong. 

If  either  a  male  or  female  colt  resembles  a  dog,  herds  of  cattle  will  die, 
and  there  will  be  famine. 

If  a  colt  is  born  without  a  head,  its  master  will  be  strong. 

If  a  colt  is  born  without  eyes,  the  god  Bel  will  bring  about  a  change  of 
dynasty. 

If  a  colt  is  born  without  feet,  the  king  increases  his  army  and  a  slaughter 
will  ensue. 

If  a  colt  is  born  without  ears,  for  three  years  the  gods  will  reduce  the 
land. 

If  a  colt  is  born  without  a  tail,  the  r.uler  will  die. 

In  conclusion  it  may  be  observed  that,  apart  from  the 
unusual  character  of  these  freaks  which  would  suffice  to  attrib- 
ute a  special  import  to  them,  the  notions  current  among  the 
Babylonians,  as  among  so  many  people  of  a  period  when 
creatures  existed,  the  various  parts  of  which  were  compounded 

1  The  wife  of  the  owner  of  the  mare  appears  to  be  meant. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  397 

of  different  animals,  may  be  regarded  as  an  additional  factor  that 
served  to  add  force  to  the  class  of  omens  we  are  considering. 
The  monsters  guarding  the  approaches  to  temples  and  palaces1 
were  but  one  form  which  this  popular  belief  assumed,  and  -when 
a  colt  was  observed  to  have  a  lion's  or  a  dog's  claw,  an  ocular 
demonstration  was  afforded  which  at  once  strengthened  and 
served  to  maintain  a  belief  that  at  bottom  is  naught  but  a  crude 
and  primitive  form  of  a  theory  of  evolution.  In  a  dim  way 
man  always  felt  the  unity  of  the  animal  world.  Animals  resem- 
bled one  another,  and  man  had  some  features  in  common  with 
animals.  What  more  natural  than  to  conclude  that  at  some 
period,  the  animals  were  composite  creatures,  and  that  even 
mankind  and  the  animal  world  were  once  blended  together. 

The  prevailing  religious  and  semi-mythological  ideas,  accord- 
ingly, enter  as  factors  in  the  significance  that  was  attached  to 
infants  or  to  the  young  of  animals,  serving  as  illustrations  of 
'  hybrid '  formations. 

Omens  from  the  Actions  of  Animals. 

The  same  order  of  ideas,  only  still  further  extended,  may  be 
detected  in  the  sacredness  attached  to  certain  animals  by  so 
many  nations  of  antiquity.  It  is  now  generally  admitted  that 
this  '  sacredness '  has  two  sides.  A  sacred  animal  may  be 
'taboo,'  that  is,  so  sacred  that  it  must  not  be  touched,  much  less 
killed  or  eaten;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  its  original  sanctity 
may  lead  people  to  regard  it  as  "  unclean,"  something  again  to 
be  avoided,  because  of  the  power  to  do  evil  involved  in  the 
primitive  conception  of  '  sacredness.' 2 

The  swine  and  the  dog  are  illustrations  of  this  double  nature 
of  sanctity  among  the  Semites.  The  former  was  sacred  to  some 
of  the  inhabitants  of  "  Syria."  3     The  Babylonians,  as  we  have 

1  See  above,  p.  138. 

2  See  Jevons,  Introduction  to  the  History  of  Religion,  chapters  vi.-ix. 

3  Robertson  Smith,  Religion  of  the  Semites,  pp.  143,  273. 


398  BAB  )  'LONIAN-ASS )  'RIAN  RELIGION. 

seen,  abstained  from  eating  it  on  certain  clays  of  the  year, 
while  the  Hebrews  and  Arabs  regarded  it  as  'an  absolute  '  taboo.' 
The  dog  to  this  day  is  in  the  Orient  an  "  unclean  "  animal, 
and  yet  it  is  forbidden  to  do  dogs  any  injury.  If,  then,  we  find 
the  Babylonians  attaching  significance  to  the  movements  of  this 
animal,  it  is  obvious  that  by  them,  too,  the  dog  was  regarded  as, 
in  some  way,  sacred.  It  was  an  '  animal  of  omen,'  sometimes 
good,  at  other  times  bad.     A  tablet  informs  us x  that : 

If  a  yellow  dog  enters  a  palace,  it  is  a  sign  of  a  distressful  fate  for  the 
palace. 

If  a  speckled  dog  enters  a  palace,  the  palace2  will  give  peace  to  the 
enemy. 

If  a  dog  enters  a  palace  and  some  one  kills  him,  the  peace  of  the  palace 
will  he  disturbed. 

If  a  dog  enters  a  palace  and  crouches  on  the  couch,  no  one  will  enjoy 
that  palace  in  peace. 

If  a  dog  enters  a  palace  and  crouches  on  the  throne,  that  palace  will 
suffer  a  distressful  fate. 

If  a  dog  enters  a  palace  and  lies  on  a  large  bowl,  the  palace  will  secure 
peace  from  the  enemy. 

There  follow  omens  in  case  clogs  enter  a  sacred  edifice: 

If  a  dog  enters  a  temple,  the  gods  will  not  enlarge  the  land. 

If  a  white  dog  enters  a  temple,  the  foundation  of  that  temple  will  be 
firm. 

If  a  black  dog  enters  a  temple,  the  foundation  of  that  temple  will  not  be 
firm. 

If  a  brown3  dog  enters  a  temple,  that  temple  will  witness  justice. 

If  a  yellow  dog  enters  a  temple,  that  temple  will  4  witness  justice. 

If  a  speckled  dog  enters  a  temple,  the  gods  will  show  favor  to  that 
temple. 

If  dogs  gather  together  and  enter  a  temple,  the  city's  peace  will  be 
disturbed. 

1  I  .enormant,  Choix  dcs   Textes  Cunciformes,  no.  89 ;   Coissier,  Documents,  etc., 

p.  104. 

2  I.e.,  the  ruler  of  the  palace. 
:!  Lit.,  '  dark  colored.' 

4  '  Not,'  perhaps  omitted. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  399 

The  juxtaposition  of  palace  and  temple  is  an  indication  that 
a  large  measure  of  sanctity  was  attached  to  the  former  as  the 
dwelling-place  of  one  who  stood  near  to  the  gods.  The  omens, 
accordingly,  in  the  case  of  both  palace  and  temple  are  again 
concerned  with  public  affairs.  But  from  the  same  tablet  we 
learn  that  an  equal  degree  of  significance  was  attached  to  the 
actions  of  dogs  when  they  entered  private  dwellings.  Precau- 
tions must  have  been  taken  against  the  presence  of  dogs  in  that 
part  of  the  house  which  was  reserved  for  a  man's  family,  for  we 
are  told:  ' 

A  dog  entering  a  man's  house  was  an  omen  that  the  ultimate  fate  of  that 
house  would  be  destruction  by  fire. 

Care  had  to  be  taken  lest  clogs  defiled  a  person  or  any  part  of 
the  house.  The  omens  varied  again  according  to  the  color  of 
the  dog. 

If  a  white  dog  defiles  2  a  man,  destruction  will  seize  him. 

If  a  black  dog  defiles  a  man,  sickness  will  seize  him. 

If  a  brown  dog  defiles  a  man,  that  man  will  perish. 

If  a  dog  defiles  a  man's  couch,  a  severe  sickness  will  seize  that  man. 

If  a  dog  defiles  a  man's  chair,  the  man  will  not  survive  the  year. 

If  a  dog  defiles  a  man's  bowl,3  a  deity  will  show  anger  towards  the  man. 

On  the  other  hand,  dogs  were  not  to  be  driven  out  of  the 
streets.  Their  presence  in  the  roads  was  essential  to  the  wel- 
fare of  the  place.     Hence  an  omen  reads: 

If  dogs  do  not  enter  the  highway,4  destruction  from  an  enemy  will  visit 
the  city. 

Through  Diodorus,  Jamblichus,  and  other  ancient  writers  we 
know  that  the  Babylonians  and  Assyrians  attached  importance 
to  the  movements  of  other  animals,  notably  serpents,  birds,  and 
certain  insects.     The  symbols  on  the  boundary  stones  which 

1  Boissier,  p.  103.  3  Out  of  which  one  eats. 

2  By  vomiting  on  him.  *  I.e.,  keep  away  from  it. 


400  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

have  been  referred  to  '  are  based  on  this  belief.  The  serpent 
figures  prominently  among  these  symbols.  In  the  Babylonian 
delude  storv,  the  dove,  raven,  and  swallow  are  introduced.  Of 
these,  the  swallow  appears  to  be  the  bird  whose  flight  was  most 
carefully  observed.  The  sign  which  represents  this  bird  in  the 
cuneiform  syllabary  also  signifies  'fate.' 2  The  mischief  wrought 
by  swarms  of  insects,  as  grasshoppers  and  locusts,  the  danger 
lurking  in  the  bites  of  scorpions  sufficiently  explain  the  impor- 
tance attached  to  the  actions  of  these  animals.  The  mysterious 
appearance  and  disappearance  of  serpents  and  their  strange 
twistings  added  an  element  in  their  case  that  increased  the  awe 
they  inspired,  while  if  Ihering  be  correct,'5  the  omens  derived 
from  the  flight  of  birds  are  a  survival  of  the  migratory  period 
in  the  history  of  a  nation,  when  birds  served  as  a  natural  guide 
in  choosing  the  easiest  course  to  pass  from  one  place  to 
another.  A  large  number  of  tablets  in  Ashurbanabal's  library 
treat  of  the  significance  attached  to  the  action  of  these  various 
animals,  and  it  is  likely  that  these  tablets  form  part  of  a  large 
series,  of  which  the  illustrations  above  adduced  regarding  the 
movements  of  dogs  form  a  part.  In  this  series,  the  application 
of  the  omens  to  individuals  is  more  strongly  emphasized  than 
in  the  series  of  birth  portents.  Naturally  so,  for  it  was  the  indi- 
vidual as  a  general  thing  who  encountered  the  signs.  In  the 
case  of  the  appearance  of  a  serpent  or  snake,  for  example,  the 
omen  consisted  in  the  fact  that  a  certain  person  beheld  it,  and 
that  person  was  involved  in  the  consequences.  Fine  distinc- 
tions are  again  introduced  that  illustrate  the  intricacies  of  the 
system  of  interpretation  perfected  in  Babylonia.  If  a  snake 
passes  from  the  right  to  the  left  side  of  a  man,  it  means  one 
thing;   if  from  the  left  to  the  right,  another;   if  the  man  who 

1  See  p.  1 82. 

2  According  to  Hilprecht  {Old  Babylonian  Inscriptions,  i.  part  2,  p.  35), '  a  goose 
or  similar  water-bird  '  was  originally  pictured  by  the  sign,  though  he  admits  that  the 
picture  was  '  later  '  used  for  swallow. 

3  Vorgeschichte  der  Indo-Europaer,  pp.  451-55. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  401 

sees  a  snake  does  not  tread  upon  it,  the  omen  is  different  than 
in  the  case  when  he  attempts  to  crush  it.  Again  the  omen 
varies  according  to  the  occupation  of  the  man  who  encountered 
a  snake.  If  he  be  a  gardener,  the  appearance  of  the  snake 
means  something  different  than  in  the  case  of  his  being  a 
sailor. 

The  place  where  the  animal  appears  is  also  of  import 
whether  in  the  street,  the  house,  or  the  temple,  and  again,  the 
time  of  its  appearance,  in  what  month  or  on  what  day.  In  the 
same  way,  an  endless  variety  of  omens  are  derived  from 
the  appearance  of  certain  birds,  the  direction  of  their  flight,  their 
fluttering  around  the  head  of  a  man  or  entering  a  man's  house. 
So,  e.g., 

If  a  raven 1  enters  a  man's  house,   that  man  will  secure  whatever  he 

desires. 

And  again: 

If  a  bird  throws  a  bit  of  meat  or  anything  into  a  man's  house,  that  man 
will  secure  a  large  fortune. 

The  omens  from  the  appearance  of  flocks  of  birds  in  a  town 
bore,  as  appears  natural,  upon  public  affairs  rather  than  upon 
the  fate  of  individuals,  and  similarly  the  appearance  of  birds  in 
a  temple  was  an  omen  for  the  whole  country. 

The  public  or  private  character  of  the  omens  was  thus  depend- 
ent in  large  measure  upon  the  question  whether  the  phenomena 
appeared  to  an  individual  directly  or  to  the  population  of  a  place 
in  general.  Meeting  a  snake  or  scorpion  in  the  course  of  a 
walk  through  the  fields  was  an  individual  omen,  and  similarly 
the  actions  of  sheep  in  a  man's  stall,  whereas,  a  mad  bull  rush- 
ing through  the  city  was  a  general  omen.     So  we  are  told  that 

If  sheep  in  the  stalls  do  not  bleat  (?),  that  stall  will  be  destroyed. 

1  The  term  used  is  Unagga,  Bezold's  Catalogue  of  the  Koujunjik  Collection, 
p.  1 84 1.     See  Jensen,  Kosmologie,  p.  153. 


402  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

Whereas  l 

A  bull  crouching  at  the  gate  of  a  city  is  an  omen  that  the  enemy  will 
capture  that  gate. 

A  bull  goring  an  ox  in  the  city  is  an  unfavorable  omen  for  the  city,  but 
if  the  bull  enters  the  precincts  of  an  individual,  it  is  favorable  for  tire  indi- 
vidual. 

A  series  of  omens  derived  from  the  appearance  of  locusts 
again  illustrates  this  principle.  When  the  insects  enter  private 
precincts,  the  individual  and  his  immediate  surroundings  are 
affected.2 

If  black  and  speckled  locusts  appear  in  a  man's  house,  the  master  of  the 
house  will  die. 

If  black  and  yellow  locusts  appear  in  a  man's  house,  the  supports  of  that 
house  will  fall. 

If  large  white  locusts  appear  in  a  man's  house,  that  house  will  be 
destroyed  and  the  owner  will  be  in  distress. 

If  white  and  brown  locusts  appear  in  a  man's  house,  that  house  will  be 
destroyed. 

If  small  white  and  brown  locusts  appear  in  a  man's  house,  the  house  will 
be  destroyed  and  the  owner  will  be  in  distress. 

If  yellow  locusts  appear  in  a  man's  house,  the  supports  of  that  house  will 
fall  and  the  owner  of  the  house  will  be  unlucky. 

If  yellow-winged  locusts  appear  in  a  man's  house,  the  master  of  the 
house  will  die  and  that  house  will  be  overthrown. 

Omens   from  Dreams. 

It  made  little  difference  whether  one  encountered  something 
while  awake  or  saw  it  in  one's  dream.  In  fact,  what  one  saw 
while  asleep  had  as  a  general  thing  more  importance.  A 
special  god  of  dreams,  Makhir,  is  often  referred  to  in  the 
religious  texts,  and  this  is  but  another  way  of  expressing  the 
belief  that  the  dreams  were  sent  to  a  man  as  omens.  An 
unusually  wide  scope  was  afforded  to  the  compilers  of  omen 

1  Bezold,  Catalogue,  p.  1710.  2  Boissier,  Documents,  etc.,  pp.  3,  4. 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  403 

series  in  their  interpretations  of  dreams,  for  what  might  not  a 
man  see  in  visions  of  the  night !  If  a  lion  l  appears  to  a  man, 
it  means  that  the  man  will  carry  out  his  purpose;  if  a  jackal,  it 
signifies  that  he  will  secure  favor  in  the  eyes  of  the  gods;  a  dog 
portends  sorrow;  a  mountain  goat,  that  the  man's  son  will  die 
of  some  disease;  a  stag,  that  his  daughter  will  die;  and  so 
through  a  long  list. 

Again  we  are  told 2  that 

If  (in  a  dream)  a  date  appears  on  a  man's  head,3  it  means  that  that  man 
will  be  in  distress. 

If  a  fish  appears  on  a  man's  head,  that  man  will  be  powerful. 

If  a  mountain  appears  on  a  man's  head,  that  man  will  be  without  a  rival. 

If  salt  appears  on  a  man's  head,  his  house  will  be  well  protected  (?). 

Similarly,  interpretations  are  offered  for  the  apparition  of  the 
dead  or  of  demons,  in  dreams.  The  book  of  Daniel  affords 
an  illustration  of  the  importance  attached  to  dreams  in 
Babylonia,  and  of  the  science  developed  out  of  the  interpreta- 
tions. The  sarcastic  touch  introduced  by  the  compiler  of  the 
book,4  who  represents  Nebuchadnezzar  as  demanding  of  his 
priests  not  merely  to  interpret  his  dream,  but  to  tell  him  what 
he  dreamed,  is  intended  to  illustrate  the  limitations  of  the  far- 
famed  '  Chaldean  wisdom.'  It  is  also  interesting  to  note  in 
connection  with  the  illustrations  adduced,  that  the  dreams  of 
Nebuchadnezzar  and  Belshazzar 5  in  the  book  of  Daniel  are  so 
largely  concerned  with  apparitions  of  animals. 

The  omens  taken  from  dreams,  together  with  the  accidents 
that  occurred  to  an  individual,  or  the  phenomena  occuring  in  a 
man's  house,  afford  us  an  insight  into  the  purely  popular  phases 
of  the  science  of  augury.  While  eclipses  and  the  movements  of 
planets  bear  chiefly  and  almost  exclusively  on  public  affairs,  and 
even  birth  portents  frequently  portend  something  to  the  ruler 

1  Bezold,  Catalogue,  pp.  1437,  1438.  3  I.e.,  over  him. 

2  Bezold,  ii.  p.  91S.  4  Chapter  ii.  4-6. 

5  Chapter  ii.  31-35,  and  vii.  2-12. 


404  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

or  to  the  country,  it  was  through  such  omens  as  partook  of  a 
purely  personal  character  that  the  intentions  of  the  gods  towards 
the  individual  were  made  manifest.  By  means  of  omens,  the 
bond  between  the  individual  and  the  gods  was  not,  indeed, 
established,  but  in  large  measure  maintained.  Here  was  a 
phase  of  the  religion  that  touched  each  individual  closely. 
What  a  person  saw,  what  he  dreamed,  what  happened  to  him, 
what  appeared  in  his  house  or  among  the  members  of  his 
household  was  of  significance  to  him.  To  know  what  every 
phenomenon  portended  was  essential  to  his  welfare;  and  we  may 
feel  certain  that  the  relations  of  the  individual  to  the  priests,  so 
far  as  these  existed,  consisted  largely  in  obtaining  from  the 
latter  the  interpretation  of  the  omens  that  he  encountered. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  power  of  the  priests  over  the  populace 
was  due  to  the  popular  belief  in  portents,  and  the  attention 
given  by  the  theologians  to  the  collection  of  exhaustive  omen 
series  is  a  proof  that  the  priests  knew  how  to  use  their  power. 

These  "  Dream  Books  "  must  have  been  very  numerous.  The 
success  of  the  priests  here  depended  even  more  than  in  other 
branches  of  the  omen  literature  upon  exhausting,  so  far  as  pos- 
sible, all  contingencies.  No  doubt  they  were  guided  here  also 
by  two  factors:  association  of  ideas,  and  past  experience  through 
making  of  a  single  coincidence  between  a  dream  and  some 
occurrence,  a  principle  of  general  application.  Some  of  the 
omens  from  dreams,  however,  appear  to  have  themselves 
formed  part  of  a  larger  series  dealing  in  general  with 

Omens  from  Individual  Experiences. 

If  one  may  judge  from  the  specimens  furnished  by  Dr.  Bezold 
in  his  catalogue,  this  series  was  unusually  extensive,  embracing 
a  large  number  of  subjects  connected  with  human  activity,  —  a 
man's  work  in  the  field,  his  actions  in  commercial  affairs,  inci- 
dents of  travel  on  sea  or  land,  his  relations  to  his  kindred —  the 


VARIOUS   CLASSES   OF  OMENS.  405 

dead  as  well  as  the  living  —  disease  and  death,  down  to  such 
apparent  trifles  as  the  conditions  of  the  walls  of  his  house. 
Cracks  in  the  wall  were  an  omen;  meeting  a  snake  in  the  high- 
way was  an  omen.  A  fall  was  an  omen;  dropping  an  instrument 
was  an  omen;  in  short,  it  is  difficult  to  say  what  was  not  an 
omen.  The  character  of  the  omens  in  this  series  does  not  differ 
in  any  essential  particulars  from  those  of  other  series.  The 
important  feature  of  the  series  is  that  it  affords  another  and 
perhaps  the  most  striking  illustration  of  that  phase  of  the  omen 
literature  which  concerns  the  individual  directly,  and,  it  seems 
safe  to  add,  exclusively. 

Take,  for  example,  omens  connected  with  symptoms  occur- 
ring in  certain  diseases.     We  are  told  that 

If  the  right  breast  is  brown,  it  is  a  fatal  (?)  sign. 

If  both  breasts  are  brown,  there  will  be  no  recovery. 

If  the  left  breast  is  green,  the  sickness  will  be  severe. 

The  symptoms  affect  the  individual  alone.  Through  this 
series  we  are  thus  enabled  to  determine  more  definitely  the 
boundary  line  between  omens  involving  the  affairs  of  the 
country  and  king,  and  those  involving  the  individual.  A  phe- 
nomenon affecting  an  individual,  or  appearing  to  him  alone, 
or  brought  about  through  some  action  of  his  of  a  purely 
private  character,  carries  in  its  train  an  omen  of  significance 
for  himself  or  his  immediate  surroundings  ;  but  the  moment 
that  these  rather  narrow  limits  are  transcended,  the  fate  of 
the  individual  becomes  more  or  less  closely  bound  up  with  the 
fortunes  of  the  population  and  of  the  ruler  of  the  country  in 
general.  The  series  also  illustrates,  perhaps  better  than  any 
other,  the  control  exercised  by  popular  beliefs  over  the  acts 
of  the  individual.  For  we  may  conclude,  that  if  work  on  cer- 
tain days  or  traveling  at  certain  periods  or  the  appearance  of 
certain  animals  indicated  something  unfavorable  to  a  man,  he 
would  studiously  avoid  bringing  misfortune  upon  himself  and 


406  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

observe  the  precautions  involved  in  the  interpretation  of  the 
vast  mass  of  the  accidents  and  incidents  of  existence.  The  task 
was  a  difficult  one,  indeed,  impossible  of  being  carried  out  to 
perfection,  but  this  would  not  hinder  him  from  making  the 
attempt.  He  was  satisfied  if  he  warded  off  at  least  a  fair  num- 
ber of  unfavorable  omens.  Correspondingly,  he  would  endeavor 
to  so  regulate  his  course  as  to  encounter  as  large  a  number  as 
possible  of  omens  that  were  favorable  to  him.  In  this  way  his 
life  would  be  spent  with  a  constant  thought  of  the  gods  and 
spirits,  who  controlled  all  things  in  this  world.  The  popular 
belief  in  omens  made  it  incumbent  upon  the  individual  not  to 
lose  sight  at  any  time  of  his  dependance  upon  powers  over 
which  he  had  but  a  limited  control. 

A  certain  phase  of  his  religion  thus  entered  largely  into  his 
life.  That  phase  would  occupy  him  by  day  and  by  night.  It 
was  a  part  of  his  religion  which  literally  engaged  him  "  upon 
lying  down  at  night,  and  upon  rising  up,  while  sitting  in  the 
house,  and  while  walking  on  the  way."  If,  despite  all  his 
efforts,  misfortune  came, — and  misfortunes,  of  course,  came 
constantly,  —  there  was  no  other  recourse  but  to  throw  himself 
upon  the  mercy  of  some  god  or  gods.  The  gods,  especially 
Marduk,  Ishtar,  Shamash,  and  Ramman,  by  putting  'grace' 
into  the  omens,  could  at  any  time  change  them  into  favorable 
indications. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

THE    COSMOLOGY    OF    THE    BABYLONIANS. 

Various  traditions  were  current  in  Babylonia  regarding  the 
manner  in  which  the  universe  came  into  existence.  The  labors 
of  the  theologians  to  systematize  these  traditions  did  not  suc- 
ceed in  bringing  about  their  unification.  Somewhat  like  in  the 
Book  of  Genesis,  where  two  versions  of  the  creation  story  have 
been  combined  by  some  editor,1  so  portions  of  what  were 
clearly  two  independent  versions  have  been  found  among 
the  remains  of  Babylonian  literature.  But  whereas  in  the  Old 
Testament  the  two  versions  are  presented  in  combination  so 
as  to  form  a  harmonic  whole,  the  two  Babylonian  versions 
continued  to  exist  side  by  side.  There  is  no  reason  to  sup- 
pose that  the  versions  were  limited  to  two.  In  fact,  a  variant 
to  an  important  episode  in  the  creation  story  has  been  dis- 
covered which  points  to  a  third  version.2 

The  suggestion  has  been  thrown  out  that  these  various 
versions  arose  in  the  various  religious  centers  of  the  Euphrates 
Valley.  So  far  as  the  editing  of  the  versions  is  concerned, 
the  suggestion  is  worthy  of  consideration,  for  it  is  hardly  reason- 
able to  suppose  that  the  theological  schools  of  one  and  the 
same  place  should  have  developed  more  than  one  cosmological 
system.     The  traditions  themselves,  however,  apart  from  the 

1  The  so-called  Elohistic  version,  Gen.  i.  i-ii.  4  ;  the  Yahwistic  version,  Gen.  ii. 
5-24.  Traces  have  been  found  in  various  portions  of  the  Old  Testament  of  other 
popular  versions  regarding  creation.  See  Gunkel,  Sckopfung  und  Chaos,  pp.  29-114, 
1 1 9-1 21. 

2  Gunkel, /A  pp.  28,  29.  What  Sayce  {e.g.,  Rec.  of  the  Past,  n.  s.,  i.  147,  148)  calls 
the  '  Cuthaean  legend  of  the  creation '  contains,  similarly,  a  variant  description  of 
Tiamat  and  her  brood. 


40S  HABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

literary  form  which  they  eventually  assumed,  need  not  have 
been  limited  to  certain  districts  nor  have  been  peculiar  to  the 
place  where  the  systematization  took  place.  Nothing  is  more 
common  than  the  interchange  of  myths  and  popular  traditions. 
They  travel  from  one  place  to  the  other,  and  contradictory 
accounts  of  one  and  the  same  event  may  be  circulated,  and 
find  credence  in  one  and  the  same  place. 

The  two  distinct  Babylonian  versions  of  the  creation  of  the 
world  that  have  up  to  the  present  time  been  found,  have  come 
to  us  in  a  fragmentary  form.  Of  the  one,  indeed,  only  some 
forty  lines  exist,  and  these  are  introduced  incidentally  in  an 
incantation  text  ;  1  of  the  other  version,  portions  of  six  tablets2 
have  been  recovered;  while  of  two  fragments  it  is  doubtful3 
whether  they  belong  to  this  same  version  or  represent  a  third 
version,  as  does  certainly  a  fragment  containing  a  variant 
account  of  the  episode  described  in  the  fourth  tablet  of  the 
larger  group.  The  fragments  of  the  longer  version  —  in  all 
23 — enable  us  to  form  a  tolerably  complete  picture  of  the 
Babylonian  cosmology,  and  with  the  help  of  numerous  allusions 
in  historical,  religious  and  astronomical  texts  and  in  classical 
writers,  we  can  furthermore  fill  out  some  of  the  gaps. 

Taking  up  the  longer  version,  which  must  for  the  present 
serve  as  our  chief  source  for  the  cosmology  of  the  Babylonians, 
it  is  important  to  note  at  the  outset  that  the  series  constitutes, 
in  reality,  a  grand  hymn  in  honor  of  Marduk.  The  account  of 
the  beginning  of  things  and  of  the  order  of  creation  is  but 
incidental  to  an  episode  which  is  intended  to  illustrate  the 
greatness  of  Marduk,  the  head  of  the  Babylonian  pantheon. 
This   episode  is  the  conquest   of   a  great   monster  known  as 

1  Published  by  Pinches,  Journ al  Royal  Asiat.  Soc,  1891,  pp.  393-408. 

2  Complete  publication  by  Delitzsch,  Das  Babylonische  Weltschopfungsepos 
(Leipzig,  1896)  with  elaborate  commentary. 

3  Sec  Zimmern  in  Gunkel's  Schopfung  und  Chaos,  pp.  415.  4 16,  and  on  the  other 
side,  Delitzsch,  Babylonische  Weltschbpfungsepos,  p.  20.  Zimmern's  doubts  are 
just  i  lied. 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  409 

Tiamat, —  a  personification,  as  we  shall  see,  of  primaeval  chaos. 
What  follows  upon  this  episode,  likewise  turns  upon  the  over- 
shadowing personality  of  Marduk.  This  prominence  given  to 
Marduk  points  of  course  to  Babylon  as  the  place  where  the 
early  traditions  received  their  literary  form.  Instead  of  desig- 
nating the  series  as  a  '  Creation  Epic '  it  would  be  quite  as 
appropriate  to  call  it    'The  Epic  of  Marduk.' 

The  god  of  Babylon  is  the  hero  of  the  story.  To  him  the 
creation  of  the  heavenly  bodies  is  ascribed.  It  is  he  who 
brings  order  and  light  into  the  world.  He  supplants  the  roles 
originally  belonging  to  other  gods.  Bel  and  Ea  give  way  to 
him.  Anu  and  the  other  great  gods  cheerfully  acknowledge 
Marduk's  power.  The  early  traditions  have  all  been  colored 
by  the  endeavor  to  glorify  Marduk;  and  since  Marduk  is  one 
of  the  latest  of  the  gods  to  come  into  prominence,  we  must 
descend  some  centuries  below  Hammurabi  before  reaching  a 
period  when  Marduk's  position  was  so  generally  recognized  as 
to  lead  to  a  transformation  of  popular  traditions  at  the  hands 
of  the  theologians. 

The  evident  purpose  of  the  'epic'  to  glorify  Marduk  also 
accounts  for  the  imperfect  manner  in  which  the  creation  of  the 
universe  is  recounted.  Only  the  general  points  are  touched 
upon.  Many  details  are  omitted  which  in  a  cosmological 
epic,  composed  for  the  specific  purpose  of  setting  forth  the 
order  of  creation,  would  hardly  have  been  wanting.  In  this 
respect,  the  Babylonian  version  again  resembles  the  Biblical 
account  of  creation,  which  is  similarly  marked  by  its  brevity, 
and  is  as  significant  for  its  omissions  as  for  what  it 
contains. 

It  but  remains  before  passing  on  to  an  analysis  of  the  '  epic  ' 
to  note  the  great  care  bestowed  upon  its  literary  form.  This  is 
evidenced  not  only  by  the  poetic  diction,  but  by  its  metrical 
form,  — a  point  to  which  Budge  was  the  first  to  direct  attention  J 

1  Proc.  Soc.  Bid/.  Arch.  vi.  7. 


410  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

and  which  Zimmern l  clearly  established.  Each  line  consists 
of  two  divisions,  and  as  a  general  thing  four  or  eight  lines 
constitute  a  stanza.  The  principle  of  parallelism,  so  charac- 
teristic of  Biblical  poetry,  is  also  introduced,  though  not  con- 
sistently carried  out. 

The  epic  was  known  from  its  opening  words  as  the  series 
'  when  above.'  Through  this  name  we  are  certain  of  possessing 
a  portion  of  the  first  tablet  —  but  alas !  only  a  portion.  A 
fragment  of  fifteen  lines  and  these  imperfectly  preserved  is  all 
that  has  as  yet  been  found.     So  far  as  decipherable,  it  reads  : 

There  was  a  time  when  above  the  heaven  was  not  named.2 

Below,  the  earth  bore  no  name. 

Apsu  was  there  from  the  first,  the  source  of  both  8 

And  raging  Tiamat  the  mother  of  both.3 

but  their  waters  4  were  gathered  together  in  a  mass. 

No  field  was  marked  off,  no  soil5  was  seen. 

When  none  of  the  gods  was  as  yet  produced, 

No  name  mentioned,  no  fate  determined, 

Then  were  created  the  gods  in  their  totality. 

Lakh mu  and  Lakhamu,  were  created. 

Days  went  by1'   .   .   . 

Anshar  and  Kishar  were  created. 

Many  days  elapsed0  .  .   . 

Ami  [l'.el  and  Ea  were  created].7 

Anshar,  Ann  (?)   .  .  . 

1  '/.eits.f.  Assyr.  viii.  1 21-124.  Delitzsch,  in  his  Babylonische  Welischopfungs- 
epos,  pp.  61-6X,  has  elaborately  set  forth  the  principles  of  the  poetic  composition. 
See  also  D.  H.  Mueller,  Die  Propheten  in  Hirer  ursprunglichen  Form.  pp.  ^-14. 

2  I.e.,  did  not  exist.  To  be  '  called'  or  to  '  bear  a  name'  meant  to  be  called  into 
existence. 

:i  I.e.,  of  heaven  and  earth. 

4  I.e.,  of  Apsu  and  Tiamat. 

5  The  word  used  is  obscure.  Jensen  and  Zimmern  render  "  reed."  Delitzsch,  I 
think,  comes  nearer  the  real  meaning  with  "  marsh."  See  Fiaupt's  translation, Proc 
Amer.  Oriental  Soc,  [896,  p.  [61. 

0  Delitzsch  supplies  a  parallel  phrase  like  "periods  elapsed." 
7  Supplied  from   Damascius'  extract  of  the  work  oi    Berosus  on   Babylonia.     See 
Cory,  ,  Indent  Fragments,  p. 92  ;   Delitzsch,  Babylonische  II  eltscftbpfungsepos,  p. 04 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  411 

At  this  point  the  fragment  breaks  off. 

Brief  as  it  is,  it  affords  a  clear  view  of  the  manner  in  which 
the  Babylonians  regarded  the  beginning  of  things.  Water 
was  the  primaeval  element.  '  Apsu  '  is  the  personified  great 
'  ocean  '  —  the  '  Deep  '  that  covers  everything.  With  Apsu 
there  is  associated  Tiamat.  Tiamat  is  the  equivalent  of  the 
Hebrew  T'hom,1  which  occurs  in  the  second  verse  of  the  open- 
ing chapter  of  Genesis,  and  which  is,  like  Apsu,  the  personifica- 
tion of  the  '  watery  deep.'  Apsu  and  Tiamat  are,  accordingly, 
synonymous.  The  combination  of  the  two  may  be  regarded  as 
due  to  the  introduction  of  the  theological  doctrine  which  we 
have  seen  plays  so  prominent  a  part  in  the  systematized  pan- 
theon, namely,  the  association  of  the  male  and  female  principle 
in  everything  connected  with  activity  or  with  the  life  of  the 
universe.  Apsu  represents  the  male  and  Tiamat  the  female 
principle  of  the  primaeval  universe.  It  does  not  follow  from 
this  that  the  two  conceptions  are  wholly  dissociated  from  popu- 
lar traditions.  Theological  systems,  it  will  be  found,  are 
always  attached  at  some  point  to  popular  and  often  to  primitive 
beliefs. 

Tiamat  was  popularly  pictured  as  a  huge  monster  of  a  for- 
bidding aspect.  Traces  of  a  similar  conception  connected 
with  T'hom  are  to  be  met  with  in  the  poetry  of  the  Old  and 
New  Testament.2  The  '  Rahab  '  and  'Leviathan'  and  the 
'  Dragon  '  of  the  apocalypse  belong  to  the  same  order  of  ideas 
that  produced  Tiamat.  All  these  monsters  represent  a  popular 
attempt  to  picture  the  chaotic  condition  that  prevailed  before 
the  great  gods  obtained  control  and  established  the  order  of 
heavenly   and  terrestrial   phenomena.     The  belief  that  water 

1  The  o  is  represented  in  Babylonian  by  a,  and  the  ending  at  in  Tiamat  is  an 
affix  which  stamps  the  Babylonian  name  as  feminine.  T'hom  in  Hebrew  is  likewise 
a  feminine  noun,  but  it  should  be  noted  that  at  a  certain  stage  in  the  development 
of  the  Semitic  languages,  the  feminine  is  hardly  distinguishable  from  the  plural  and 
collective. 

2  Gunkel,  Schopfimg  und  Chaos,  pp.  29-82,  379-398. 


412  JiAHYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

was  the  original  element  existing  in  the  universe  and  the 
'  source  '  of  everything,  may  also  have  had  its  rise  in  the  popular 
mind.  It  was  suggested  in  the  Euphrates  Valley,  in  part,  by  the 
long-continued  rainy  season,  as  a  result  of  which  the  entire 
region  was  annually  flooded.  The  dry  land  and  vegetation 
appeared,  only  after  the  waters  had  receded.  The  yearly  phe- 
nomenon brought  home  to  the  minds  of  the  Babylonians,  a 
picture  of  primaeval  chaos. 

In  the  schools  of  theology  that  arose  with  the  advance  of 
culture,  these  two  notions  —  water  as  the  first  element  and  a 
general  conception  of  chaos  —  were  worked  out  with  the  result 
that  Apsu  and  Tiamat  became  mythical  beings  whose  dominion 
preceded  that  of  the  gods.  Further  than  this  the  question- 
ings of  the  schoolmen  did  not  go.  They  conceived  of  a  time 
when  neither  the  upper  firmament  nor  the  dry  land  existed  and 
when  the  gods  were  not  yet  placed  in  control,  but  they  could 
not  conceive  of  a  time  when  there  was  '  nothing '  at  all.  This 
cosmological  theory  which  we  may  deduce  from  the  fragment 
of  the  first  tablet  of  the  creation  series  is  confirmed  by  the 
accounts  that  have  come  down  to  us — chiefly  through  Damas- 
cius  —  of  the  treatment  of  the  subject  by  Berosus.1  Damascius 
explicitly  places  the  Babylonians  among  those  nations  who 
fail  to  carry  back  the  universe  to  an  ultimate  single  source. 
There  is  nothing  earlier  than  the  two  beings  —  Apsu  and 
Tiamat.2 

The  massing  together  of  the  primaeval  waters  completes  the 
picture  of  chaos  in  the  cuneiform  account.  From  the  popular 
side,  the  commingling  corresponds  to  the  Tbhuwa  Bbhu  of  the 
Book  of  Genesis,  but  for  the  Babylonian  theologians,  this 
embrace  of  Apsu  and  Tiamat  becomes  a  symbol  of   'sexual' 

1  For  our  purposes  it  is  sufficient  to  refer  for  the  relations  existing  between 
Damascius  and  the  cuneiform  records  to  Smith's  Chaldaeische  Genesis,  pp.63  66,  to 
I  enormant's  Essai  de  Commentaire  sitr  les  fragments  Cosmogoniqites  de  Berose, 
pp.  67  sea.,  and  to  Jensen's  Kosmologie  der  Babylonier,  pp.  270-272. 

-  The  names  are  given  by  Damascius  as  Apason  and  Tauthe. 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF    THE   BABYLONIANS.  413 

union.1  As  the  outcome  of  this  union,  the  gods  are  produced. 
This  dependence  of  the  gods  upon  Apsu  and  Tiamat  is  but 
vaguely  indicated.  Another  theory  appears  to  have  existed 
according  to  which  the  gods  were  contemporaneous  with 
primaeval  chaos.  The  vagueness  may  therefore  be  the  result 
of  a  compromise  between  conflicting  schools  of  thought. 
However  this  may  be,  the  moment  that  the  gods  appear,  a 
conflict  ensues  between  them  and  Apsu-Tiamat.  This  con- 
flict represents  the  evolution  from  chaos  to  order.  But  before 
taking  up  this  phase  of  the  epic,  a  few  words  must  be  said 
as  to  the  names  of  the  gods  mentioned,  and  as  to  the  order  in 
which  they  occur. 

There  are  three  classes  of  deities  enumerated.  The  first 
two  classes  consist,  each,  of  a  pair  of  deities  while  the  third  is 
the  well-known  triad  of  the  old  Babylonian  theology.  Be- 
tween the  creation  of  each  class  a  long  period  elapses  —  a 
circumstance  that  may  be  regarded  as  an  evidence  of  the 
originally  independent  character  of  each  class.  Now  it  has 
recently  been  shown  2  that  Lakhamu  is  the  feminine  of  Lakhmu. 
The  first  class  of  deities  is,  therefore,  an  illustration  again  of 
the  conventional  male  and  female  principles  introduced  into 
the  current  theology.  While  there  are  references  to  Lakhmu 
and  Lakhamu  in  the  religious  texts,3  particularly  in  incanta- 
tions, these  two  deities  play  no  part  whatsoever  in  the  active 
pantheon,  as  revealed  by  the  historical  texts.  In  popular 
tradition, 4  Lakhmu  survived  as  a  name  of  a  mythical 
monster. 

Alexander  Polyhistor5  quotes  Berosus  as  saying  in  his  book 
on  Babylonia  that  the  first  result  of  the  mixture  of  water  and 

1  Suggested  by  Professor  Haupt  (Schrader,  Cuneiform  Inscriptions  and  the  Old 
Testament,  p.  7). 

2  Hommel,  Proc.  Soc.  Bibl.  Arch,  xviii.  19. 

3  See  Jensen,  Kosmologic,  pp.  224,  225. 

4  Agumkakrimi  Inscription  (VR.  33,  iv.  50)  ;  Nabonnedos  (Cylinder,  VR.  64,  ii. 
16,  17).  5  Cory's  Ancient  Fragments,  p.  5S. 


414  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

chaos  —  i.e.,  of  Apsu  and  Tiamat —  was  the  production  of 
monsters  partly  human,  partly  bestial.  The  winged  bulls  and 
lions  that  guarded  the  approaches  to  temples  and  palaces  are 
illustrations  of  this  old  notion,  and  it  is  to  this  class  of 
mythical  beings  that  Lakhmu  belongs.  The  schools  of  theol- 
ogy, seizing  hold  of  this  popular  tradition,  add  again  to 
Lakhmu  a  female  mate  and  convert  the  tradition  into  a  symbol 
of  the  first  step  in  the  evolution  of  order  out  of  the  original 
chaos.  Lakhmu  and  Lakhamu  are  made  to  stand  for  an  entire 
class  of  beings  that  are  the  offspring  of  Apsu  and  Tiamat. 
This  class  does  not  differ  essentially  from  Apsu  and  Tiamat, 
nor  from  the  '  Leviathan,'  the  '  Dragon,'  the  winged  serpents, 
and  the  winged  bulls  that  are  all  emanations  of  the  same  order 
of  ideas.  Accordingly,  we  find  Lakhmu  and  Lakhamu  asso- 
ciated with  Tiamat  when  the  conflict  with  the  gods  begins. 
They  are  products  of  chaos  and  yet  at  the  same  time  contem- 
porary with  chaos,  —  monsters  not  so  fierce  as  Tiamat,  but 
withal  monsters  who  had  to  be  subdued  before  the  planets  and 
the  stars,  vegetation  and  man  could  appear. 

The  introduction  of  Anshar  and  Kishar  as  intermediate 
between  the  monsters  and  the  triad  of  gods  appears  to  be  due 
entirely  to  the  attempt  at  theological  systematization  that 
clearly  stamps  the  creation  epic  as  the  conscious  work  of 
schoolmen,  though  shaped,  as  must  always  be  borne  in  mind, 
out  of  the  material  furnished  by  popular  tradition.  In  con- 
nection with  the  etymology  and  original  form  of  the  chief  of 
the  Assyrian  pantheon,1  the  suggestion  was  made  that  the 
introduction  of  Anshar  into  the  creation  epic  is  a  concession 
made  to  the  prominence  that  Ashur  acquired  in  the  north. 
We  are  now  able  to  put  this  suggestion  in  a  more  defi- 
nite form.  The  pantheon  of  the  north,  as  we  have  seen,  was 
derived  from  the  south.  Not  that  all  the  gods  of  the  south 
are  worshipped   in   the   north,  but   those   that  are  worshipped 

1  See  above,  pp.  19S,  199. 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  415 

in  the  north  are  also  found  in  the  south,  and  originate  there. 
The  distinctive  features  of  Ashur  are  due  to  the  political  con- 
ditions that  were  developed  in  Assyria,  but  the  unfolding  of 
the  conceptions  connected  with  this  god  which  make  him  the 
characteristic  deity  of  Assyria,  indeed,  the  only  distinctive 
Assyrian  figure  in  the  Assyrian  pantheon,  does  not  preclude 
the  possibility,  of  the  southern  origin  of  Ashur. 

If,  as  has  been  made  plausible  by  Hommel,  Nineveh,  the 
later  capital  of  the  Assyrian  empire,  represents  a  settlement 
made  by  inhabitants  of  a  Nineveh  situated  in  the  south, 
there  is  no  reason  why  a  southern  deity  bearing  the  name 
Anshar  should  not  have  been  transferred  from  the  south  to 
the  north.  The  attempt  has  been  made  *  to  explain  the  change 
from  Anshar  to  Ashur.  The  later  name  Ashur,  because  of  its 
ominous  character,  effectually  effaced  the  earlier  one  in  popular 
thought.  The  introduction  of  the  older  form  Anshar,  not 
merely  in  the  first  tablet  of  the  creation  series,  but,  as  we  shall 
presently  see,  elsewhere,  confirms  the  view  of  a  southern 
origin  for  Ashur,  and  also  points  to  the  great  antiquity  of  the 
Anshar-Ashur  cult.  It  is  not  uncommon  to  find  colonies  more 
conservative  in  matters  of  religious  thought  and  custom  than 
the  motherland,  and  there  is  nothing  improbable  in  the  inter- 
esting conclusion  thus  reached  that  Ashur,  the  head  of  an 
empire,  so  much  later  in  point  of  time  than  Babylonia,  should 
turn  out  to  be  an  older  deity  than  the  chief  personage  in  the 
Babylonian  pantheon  after  the  days  of  Hammurabi. 

But  while  Anshar-Ashur  under  this  view  is  a  figure  surviving 
from  an  ancient  period,  he  is  transformed  by  association  with  a 
complementary  deity  Kishar  into  a  symbol,  just  as  we  have 
found  to  be  the  case  with  Lakhmu.  By  a  play  upon  his  name, 
resting  upon  an  arbitrary  division  of  Anshar  into  An  and  S/iar, 
the  deity  becomes  the  'one  that  embraces  all  that  is  above.' 
The  element  An  is  the  same  that  we  have  in  Ann,  and  is  the 

1  See  above,  pp.  198,  199. 


t 


416  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN   RELIC  ION. 

'ideographic'1  form  for  'high'  and  'heaven.'  Shar  signifies 
'  totality  '  and  has  some  connection  with  a  well-known  Baby- 
lonian word  for  '  king.'  The  natural  consort  to  an  all-embrac- 
ing upper  power  is  a  power  that  '  embraces  all  that  is  below  '; 
and  since  Ki  is  the  ideographic  form  for  '  earth,'  it  is  evident 
that  Ki-Shar  is  a  creation  of  the  theologians,  introduced  in 
order  to  supply  Anshar  with  an  appropriate  associate.  The 
two  in  combination  represent  a  pair  like  Lakhmu  and  Lak- 
hamu.  As  the  latter  pair  embrace  the  world  of  monsters,  so 
Anshar  and  Kishar  stand  in  the  theological  system  for  the 
older  order  of  gods,  a  class  of  deities  antecedent  to  the  series 
of  which  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea  are  the  representatives.  Besides 
the  antiquity  of  Anshar  and  the  factor  involved  in  the  play  upon 
the  name,  the  prominence  of  the  Ashur  cult  in  the  north  also 
entered  into  play  (as  already  suggested)  in  securing  for  Anshar- 
Ashur,  a  place  in  the  systematized  cosmology.  The  Babylonian 
priests,  while  always  emphasizing  the  predominance  of  Marduk, 
could  not  entirely  resist  the  influences  that  came  to  them  from 
the  north.  Ashur  was  not  accorded  a  place  in  the  Babylonian 
cult,  but  he  could  not  be  ignored  altogether.  Moreover,  Assy- 
ria had  her  priests  and  schools,  and  we  are  permitted  to  see  in 
the  introduction  of  Anshar  in  the  creation  epic,  a  concession 
that  reflects  the  influence,  no  doubt  indirect,  and  in  part  per- 
haps unconscious,  but  for  all  that,  the  decided  influence  of  the 
north  over  the  south.  The  part  played  by  Anshar  in  the  most 
important  episode  of  the  creation  epic  will  be  found  to  further 
strengthen  this  view.2 

Kishar,  at  all  events,  forms  no  part  of  either  the  Babylonian 
or  of  the  active  Assyrian  pantheon.     She  does  not  occur  in  his- 
torical or  religious  texts.      Her  existence  is  purely  theoretical  - 
a  creation  of  the  schools  without  any  warrant  in  popular  tradi- 

1  I   avoid   the  term  "  Sumerian  "  here,  because  I  feel  convinced   that  the  play  on 
Anshar  is  of  an  entirely  artificial  character  and  has  no  philological  basis. 
-  See  below,  pp.  .121-423. 


THE    COSMOLOGY   OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  417 

tion,  so  far  as  we  can  see.  A  tablet  is  fortunately  preserved  x 
(though  only  in  part)  which  enables  us  to  come  a  step  nearer 
towards  determining  the  character  of  the  series  of  powers  re- 
garded as  antecedent -to  the  well-known  deities.  In  this  tablet, 
no  less  than  ten  pairs  of  deities  are  enumerated  that  are  ex- 
pressly noted  as  '  Father-mother  of  Anu,'  that  is,  as  antecedent 
to  Anu.2  Among  these  we  find  Anshar  and  Kishar,  and  by 
their  side,  such  pairs  as  Anshar-gal,  i.e.,  '  great  totality  of  what 
is  on  high,'  and  Kishar-gal,  i.e.,  'great  totality  of  what  is  be- 
low,' Enshar  and  Ninshar,  i.e.,  'lord'  and  'mistress,'  respec- 
tively, of  '  all  there  is,'  Du'ar  and  Da'ur,  forms  of  a  stem  which 
may  signify  '  perpetuity,'  Alala,  i.e.,  '  strength,'  and  a  consort 
Eelili.  Lakhmu  and  Lakhamu  are  also  found  in  the  list.  While 
some  of  the  names  are  quite  obscure,  and  the  composition  of 
the  list  is  due  to  the  scholastic  spirit  emanating  from  the 
schools  of  theology,  the  fact  that  some  of  the  deities,  as 
Alala,  Eelili,  Lakhmu,  and  Lakhamu,  occur  in  incantations 
shows  that  the  theologians  were  guided  in  part  by  dimmed  tra- 
ditions of  some  deities  that  were  worshipped  prior  to  the  ones 
whose  cult  became  prominent  in  historic  times.  Anshar,  Alala, 
Belili,  Lakhmu,  and  Du'ar  were  such  deities.  To  each  of  these 
an  associate  was  given,  in  accord  with  the  established  doctrine 
of  'duality'  that  characterizes  the  more  advanced  of  the  ancient 
Semitic  cults  in  general.  Others,  like  Anshar-gal  and  Enshar, 
seem  to  be  pure  abstractions  —  perhaps  only  '  variants  '  of 
Anshar,  and  the  number  ten  may  have  some  mystical  signifi- 
cance that  escapes  us.  So  much,  at  all  events,  seems  certain 
that  even  the  old  Babylonian  pantheon,  as  revealed  by  the 
oldest  historical  texts,  represents  a  comparatively  advanced 
stage  of  the  religion  when  some  still  older  gods  had  already 
yielded  to  others  and  a  system  was  already  in  part  produced 
which  left  out   of   consideration  these  older  deities.     This  is 

MIR.  54,  no.  3. 

2  For  a  different  interpretation  of  the  phrase,  see  Jensen,  Kosmologie,  pp.  273,274. 


41S  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

indicated  by  the  occurrence  of  the  triad  Ami,  Bel,  and  Ea  as 
early  as  the  days  of  Gudea,1  and  it  is  this  triad  which  in 
the  creation  epic  follows  upon  the  older  series  symbolized  by 
Anshar  and  Kishar.  The  later  '  theology  '  found  a  solution  of 
the  problem  by  assuming  four  series  of  deities  represented 
by  Apsu  and  Tiamat,  by  Lakhmu  and  Lakhamu,  by  Anshar 
and  Kishar,  and  by  the  triad  Anu,   Bel,  and  Ea. 

In  a  vague  way,  as  we  have  seen,  Apsu  and  Tiamat  are  the 
progenitors  of  Lakhmu  and  Lakhamu.  The  priority,  again,  of 
Lakhmu  and  Lakhamu,  as  well  as  of  Anshar  and  Kishar,  is 
expressed  by  making  them  '  ancestors  '  of  Anu,  Bel  and  Ea. 
While  in  the  list  above  referred  to,  Lakhmu  and  Lakhamu  are 
put  in  a  class  with  Anshar  and  Kishar,  in  the  creation  epic  they 
form  a  separate  class,  and  Delitzsch  has  justly  recognized,2  in 
this  separation,  the  intention  of  the  compilers  to  emphasize  an 
advance  in  the  evolution  of  chaos  to  order,  which  is  the  key- 
note of  the  Babylonian  cosmology.  Lakhmu  and  Lakhamu 
represent  the  '  monster '  world  where  creatures  are  produced 
in  strange  confusion,  whereas  Anshar  and  Kishar  indicate  a 
division  of  the  universe  into  two  distinct  and  sharply  defined 
parts.  The  splitting  of  '  chaos  '  is  the  first  step  towards  its 
final  disappearance. 

The  creation  of  Anshar  and  Kishar  marks  indeed  the 
beginning  of  a  severe  conquest  which  ends  in  the  overthrow  of 
Tiamat,  and  while  in  the  present  form  of  the  epic,  the  contest 
is  not  decided  before  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea  and  the  chief  deities  of 
the  historic  pantheon  are  created,  one  can  see  traces  of  an 
earlier  form  of  the  tradition  in  which  Anshar  —  perhaps  with 
some  associates — is  the  chief  figure  in  the  strife. 

Of  the  first  tablet,  we  have  two  further  fragments  supplement- 
ing one  another,  in  which  the  beginnings  of  this  terrible  conflict 
are  described.     With  Apsu  and  Tiamat  there  are  associated  a 

1  See  p.  107. 

2  Babylonische  WcltscJwpfungsepos,  p.  94. 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE   BABYLONIANS. 


419 


variety  of  monsters  who  prepare  themselves  for  the  fray.  The 
existence  of  these  associates  shows  that  the  'epic'  does  not 
aim  to  account  for  the  real  origin  of  things,  but  only  for  the 
origin  of  the  order  of  the  universe.  At  the  beginning  there 
was  chaos,  but  '  chaos,'  so  far  from  representing  emptiness  (as 
came  to  be  the  case  under  a  monotheistic  conception  of  the 
universe)  was  on  the  contrary  marked  by  a  superabundant 
fullness. 

Through  Alexander  Polyhistor,1  as  already  mentioned,  we 
obtain  a  satisfactory  description  of  this  period  of  chaos  as 
furnished  by  Berosus.  At  the  time  when  all  was  darkness  and 
water,  there  flourished  strange  monsters,  human  beings  with 
wings,  beings  with  two  heads,  male  and  female,  hybrid  forma- 
tions, half-man,  half-animal,  with  horns  of  rams  and  horses' 
hoofs,  bulls  with  human  faces,  dogs  with  fourfold  bodies  end- 
ing in  fish  tails,  horses  with  heads  of  dogs,  and  various  other 
monstrosities. 

This  account  of  Berosus  is  now  confirmed  by  the  cuneiform 
records.  The  associates  of  Tiamat  are  described  in  a  manner 
that  leaves  no  doubt  as  to  their  being  the  monsters  referred  to. 
We  are  told  that 

Ummu-Khubur,2  the  .creator   of  everything,    added 

Strong  warriors,  creating  great  serpents, 

Sharp  of  tooth,  merciless  in  attack. 

With  poison  in  place  of  blood,  she  filled  their  bodies. 

Furious  vipers  she  clothed  with  terror, 

Fitted  them  out  with  awful  splendor,  made  them  high  of  stature  (?) 

That  their  countenance  might  inspire  terror  and  arouse  horror, 

Their  bodies  inflated,  their  attack  irresistible. 


1  Cory's  Ancient  Fragments,  p.  58. 

2  An  epithet  descriptive  of  Tiamat.  "  Ummu  "  is  "  mother  "  and  "  khubur  "  signi- 
fies "  hollow  "  ;  "  mother  of  the  hollow  "  would  be  a  poetic  expression  for  "  source  of 
the  deep,"  and  an  appropriate  term  to  apply  to  Tiamat.  It  has  nothing  to  do  with 
Omoroka.  The  latter,  as  Wright  has  shown,  is  a  corruption  of  "  O  Marduk  "  {Zeits. 
f.  Assyr.  x.  71-74). 


420  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

She  set  up  basilisks  (?)  great  serpents  and  monsters1 
A  great  monster,  a  mad  dog,  a  scorpion-man 
A  raging  monster,  a  fish-man,  a  great  bull, 
Carrying  merciless  weapons,  not  dreading  battle. 

In  all,  eleven  monstrous  beings  are  created  by  Tiamat  for 
the  great  conquest.  At  their  head  she  places  a  being  Kingu, 
whom  she  raises  to  the  dignity  of  a  consort. 

The  formal  installation  of  Kingu  is  described  as  follows: 

She  raised  Kingu  among  them  to  be  their  chief. 

To  march  at  the  head  of  the  forces,  to  lead  the  assembly. 

To  command  the  weapons  to  strike,  to  give  the  orders  for  the  fray. 

To  be  the  first  in  war,  supreme  in  triumph. 

She  ordained  him  and  clothed  him  with  authority  (?). 

Tiamat  then  addresses  Kingu  directly: 

Through  my  word  to  thee,  I  have  made  thee  the  greatest  among  the 

gods. 
The  rule  over  all  the  gods  I  have  placed  in  thy  hand. 
The  greatest  shalt  thou  be,  thou,  my  consort,  my  only  one. 

Tiamat  thereupon 

Gives  him  the  tablets  of  fate,  hangs  them  on  his  breast,  and  dismisx ■> 

him. 
'Thy  command  be  invincible,  thy  order  authoritative.'2 

The  plan  of  procedure,  it  would  appear,  is  the  result  of  a 
council  of  war  held  by  Apsu  and  Tiamat,  who  feel  themselves 
powerless  to  carry  on  the  contest  by  themselves.  The  portion 
of  the  tablet3  in  which  this  council  is  recounted  is  in  so  bad  a 
condition  that  but  little  can  be  made  out  of  it.  Associated 
with  Apsu  and  Tiamat  in  council,  is  a  being  Mummu,  and 
since    Damascius    expressly  notes   on  the   direct  authority  of 

1  The  word  used  is  Lakhami,  the  plural  of  Lakhamu. 

2  This  scene,  the  description  of  the  monsters  and  the  installation  of  Kingu,  occurs 
four  times  in  the  '  Epic'     See  p.  424. 

8  Delitzsch,  Babylonische  Wcltschdpfungscpos,  p.  25. 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  421 

Berosus  that  Apsu  and  Tiamat  produced  a  son  Moumis,1  there 
is  every  reason  to  believe  that  Mummu  represents  this  off- 
spring. In  the  subsequent  narrative,  however,  neither  Apsu 
nor  Mummu  play  any  part.  Tiamat  has  transferred  to  Kingu 
and  the  eleven  monsters  all  authority,  and  it  is  only  after 
they  are  defeated  that  Tiamat  —  but  Tiamat  alone  —  enters 
the  fray. 

The  rage  of  Tiamat  is  directed  against  Anshar,  Kishar,  and 
their  offspring.  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea,  while  standing  at  the  head  of 
the  latter,  are  not  the  only  gods  introduced.  When  the  con- 
test begins,  all  the  great  gods  and  also  the  minor  ones  are  in 
existence. 

The  cause  of  Tiamat's  rage  is  indicated,  though  vaguely,  in 
the  portions  preserved.  In  the  opening  lines  of  the  epic 
there  is  a  reference  to  the  time  '  when  fates  were  not  yet 
decided.'  The  decision  of  fates  is  in  the  Babylonian  theology 
one  of  the  chief  functions  of  the  gods.  It  constitutes  the 
mainspring  of  their  power.  To  decide  fates  is  practically  to 
control  the  arrangement  of  the  universe  —  to  establish  order. 
It  is  this  function  which  arouses  the  natural  opposition  of 
Tiamat  and  her  brood,  for  Tiamat  feels  that  once  the  gods  in 
control,  her  sway  must  come  to  an  end.  On  the  part  of  the 
gods  there  is  great  terror.  They  are  anxious  to  conciliate 
Tiamat  and  are  not  actuated  by  any  motives  of  rivalry.  Order 
is  not  aggressive.  It  is  chaos  which  manifests  opposition  to 
'order.'  In  the  second  tablet  of  the  series,  Anshar  sends  his 
son  Anu  with  a  message  to  Tiamat  : 

Go  and  step  before  Tiamat. 

May  her  liver  be  pacified,  her  heart  softened. 

Anu  obeys,  but  at  the  sight  of  Tiamat's  awful  visage  takes 
flight.  It  is  unfortunate  that  the  second  tablet  is  so  badly  pre- 
served.    We  are  dependent  largely  upon  conjecture  for  what 

1  Cory,  ib.  p.  92. 


422  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION 

follows  the  failure  of  Anu's  mission.  From  references  in 
subsequent  tablets,  it  seems  certain  that  Anshar  sends  out  Ea 
as  a  second  messenger  and  that  Ea  also  fails.  Tiamat  is 
determined  upon  destroying  the  gods,  or  at  least  upon  keep- 
ing from  them  the  '  decision  of  fates.'  Anshar,  it  will  be  seen, 
stands  at  the  head  of  the  pantheon,  and  it  seems  natural  that 
he,  and  not  one  of  his  offspring,  should  be  the  final  victor. 
This  indeed  appears  to  have  been  the  original  form  of  the 
myth  or  at  least  one  form  of  it.  In  a  second  form  it  was  Bel 
to  whom  the  victory  was  ascribed,  and  this  Bel  of  the  triad,  we 
have  seen,  was  En-lil,  the  chief  god  of  Nippur ;  but  both 
Anshar  and  Bel  must  give  way  to  the  patron  deity  of  the 
city  of  Babylon  —  Marduk.  Anshar- Ashur,  the  head  of  the 
Assyrian  pantheon,  could  not  be  tolerated  by  the  Babylonian 
priests  as  a  power  superior  to  Marduk.  On  the  other  hand, 
Anshar  could  not  be  set  aside,  for  he  survived  in  popular  tradi- 
tion. The  result  is  a  compromise.  Marduk  gains  the  victory 
over  Tiamat,  but  is  commissioned  to  do  so  by  the  assembly  of 
the  gods,  including  Anshar.  As  for  the  older  Bel,  he  volun- 
tarily transfers  to  Marduk  his  name.  In  this  way,  the  god  Bel 
of  the  triad  becomes  one  with  Marduk. 

Perhaps  in  one  religious  center  and  at  a  time  when  Ea 
was  the  chief  god,  still  another  version  existed  which  assigned 
the  triumph  to  Ea,  for  as  will  be  pointed  out,  traditions  waver 
between  assigning  to  Ea  or  to  Bel-Marduk  so  fundamental  a 
function  as  the  creation  of  mankind.  In  short,  the  present 
form  of  the  creation  epic  is  '  eclectic '  and  embodies  what 
the  Germans  call  a  tendenz.  To  each  of  the  great  gods,  Anshar, 
Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea,  some  part  in  the  contest  is  assigned,  but  the 
greatest  role  belongs  to  Marduk. 

The  second  tablet  closes  with  Anshar's  decision  to  send  his 
son  Marduk  against  Tiamat : 

Marduk  heard  the  word  of  his  father. 

His  heart  rejoiced  and  to  his  father  he  spoke. 


THE    COSMOLOGY   OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  423 

With  joyous  heart  he  is  ready  to  proceed  to  the  contest,  but 
he  at  once  makes  good  his  claim  to  supreme  control  in  case  he 
is  victorious.     He  addresses  the  assembled  gods  : 

When  I  shall  have  become  your  avenger, 

Binding  Tiamat  and  saving  your  life, 

Then  come  in  a  body, 

In  Ubshu-kenna,1  let  yourselves  down  joyfully, 

My  authority  instead  of  yours  will  assume  control, 

Unchangeable  shall  be  whatever  I  do, 

Irrevocable  and  irresistible,  be  the  command  of  my  lips. 

The  declaration  foreshadows  the  result. 

The  third  tablet  is  taken  up  with  the  preliminaries  for  the 
great  contest,  and  is  interesting  chiefly  because  of  the  insight 
it  affords  us  into  Babylonian  methods  of  literary  composition. 
Anshar  sends  Gaga2  to  the  hostile  camp  with  the  formal 
announcement  of  Marduk's  readiness  to  take  up  the  cause  of 
the  gods.  Gaga  does  not  face  Tiamat  directly,  but  leaves  the 
message  with  Lakhmu  and  Lakhamu  : 


'S 


Go  Gaga,  messenger  (?)  joy  of  my  liver, 
To  Lakhmu  and  Lakhamu  I  will  send  thee. 

The  message  proper  begins  as  follows  : 

Anshar  your  son  has  sent  me, 
The  desire  of  his  heart  he  has  entrusted  to  me. 
Tiamat,  our  mother  is  full  of  hate  towards  us, 
With  all  her  might  she  is  bitterly  enraged. 

The  eleven  associates  that  Tiamat  has  ranged  on  her  side  are 
again  enumerated,  together  with  the  appointment  of  Kingu  as 
chief  of  the  terror-inspiring  army.     Gaga  comes  to  Lakhmu 

1  "  The  chamber  of  fates  "  where  Marduk  sits  on  New  Year's  Day  and  decides  the 
fate  of  mankind  for  the  ensuing  year.  Jensen  and  Zimmern  read  u'fshugina,  but 
see  Delitzsch,  Bnbylonische  Wcltschbffungscpos,  p.  135. 

2  The  deity  is  mentioned  by  Sennacherib  (M.&.s,sn&r-Kost,  Batci7isc/iriftcn,  p.  108). 
See  above,  p.  238. 


424  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

and  Lakhamu  and  delivers  the  message  verbatim,  so  that  alto- 
gether this  portion  of  the  narrative  is  repeated  no  less  than  four 
times.1  The  same  tendency  towards  repetition  is  met  with  in 
the  Gilgamesh  epic  and  in  the  best  of  the  literary  productions 
of  Babylonia.  It  may  be  ascribed  to  the  influence  exerted  by 
the  religious  hymns  and  incantations  where  repetition,  as  we 
have  seen,  is  also  common,  though  serving  a  good  purpose. 
The  message  concludes: 

I  sent  Ami,  he  could  not  endure  her2  presence. 

Ea3  was  afraid  and  took  to  flight. 

Marduk  has  stepped  forward,  the  chief  of  the  gods,  your  son, 

To  proceed  against  Tiamat,  he  has  set  his  mind. 

Marduk's  declaration  is  then  repeated. 

Upon  hearing  the  message  Lakhmu  and  Lakhamu  and  "  all 
the  Igigi"4  are  distressed,  but  are  powerless  to  avert  the  coming 
disaster.  The  formal  declaration  of  war  having  been  sent,  the 
followers  of  Anshar  assemble  at  a  meal  which  is  realistically 
described: 

They  ate  bread,  they  drank  wine. 

The  sweet  wine  took  away  their  senses. 

They  became  drunk,  and  their  bodies  swelled  up. 

With  this  description  the  third  tablet  closes. 

The  meal  symbolizes  the  solemn  gathering  of  the  gods.  At 
its  conclusion,  so  it  would  seem,  Marduk  is  formally  installed 
as  the  leader  to  proceed  against  Tiamat.  The  gods  vie  with  one 
another  in  showering  honors  upon  Marduk.  They  encourage 
him  for  the  fight  by  praising  his  unique  powers: 

\  In  the  first  tablet,  in  the  second  in  connection  with  the  mission  of  Ami,  and 
twice  in  the  third  in  connection  with  Marduk's  visit. 

-  Titmat's  presence. 

:i  Called  Nudimmud.  Delitzsch,  Babylonische  Weltschopfungsepos,  p.  99,  questions 
the  identity  with  Ea,  but  his  skepticism  is  unwarranted,  though  the  title  is  also  used 
oi  Bel. 

4  Here  used  to  comprise  the  army  of  Tiamat. 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  425 

Thou  art  honored  among  the  great  gods, 

Thy  destiny  is  unique,  thy  command  is  Anu.1 

Marduk,  thou  art  honored  among  the  great  gods, 

Thy  destiny  is  unique,  thy  command  is  Anu, 

Henceforth  thy  order  is  absolute. 

To  elevate  and  to  lower  is  in  thy  hands, 

What  issues  from  thee  is  fixed,  thy  order  cannot  be  opposed, 

None  among  the  gods  may  trespass  upon  thy  dominion. 

Thy  weapons  will  never  be  vanquished;   they  will  shatter  thy  enemies. 
O  lord  !  grant  life  to  him  who  trusts  in  thee, 
But  destroy  the  life  of  the  god  who  plots  evil. 

As  a  proof  of  the  power  thus  entrusted  to  Marduk,  the  gods 
give  the  latter  a  '  sign.'  Marduk  performs  a  miracle.  A  gar- 
ment is  placed  in  the  midst  of  the  gods. 

Command  that  the  dress  disappear  ! 
Then  command  that  the  dress  return  ! 

Marduk  proceeds  to  the  test. 

As  he  gave  the  command,  the  dress  disappeared. 
He  spoke  again  and  the  dress  was  there. 

This  '  sign,'  which  reminds  one  of  Yahwe's  signs  to  Moses 
as  a  proof  of  the  latter's  power,2  is  to  be  regarded  as  an  indica- 
tion that  "  destruction  and  creation  "  are  in  Marduk's  hands. 
The  gods  rejoice  at  the  exhibition  of  Marduk's  power.  In 
chorus  they  exclaim,  "Marduk  is  king."  The  insignia  of  royalty, 
throne,  sceptre,  and  authority  are  conferred  upon  him. 

Now  go  against  Tiamat,  cut  off  her  life, 

Let  the  winds  carry  her  blood  to  hidden  regions.3 

Marduk  thereupon  fashions  his  weapons  for  the  fray.  Myth 
and  realism  are  strangely  intertwined  in  the  description  of  these 

1  I.e.,  thy  power  is  equal  to  that  of  Anu. 

2  Exod.  iv.  2-8 ;  other  parallels  might  be  adduced. 

3  Le.,  far  off. 


426  BABYLONIAN- ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

weapons.  Bow  and  quiver,  the  lance  and  club  are  mentioned, 
together  with  the  storm  and  the  lightning  flash.  In  addition  to 
this  he 

Constructs  a  net  wherewith  to  enclose  the  life  of  Tiamat. 
The  four  winds  he  grasped  so  that  she  could  not  escape.1 
The  south  and  north  winds,  the  east  and  west  winds 
He  brought  to  the  net,  which  was  the  gift  of  his  father  Anu. 

His  outfit  is  not  yet  complete. 

He  creates  a  destructive  wind,  a  storm,  a  hurricane, 
Making  of  the  four  winds,  seven2  destructive  and  fatal  ones; 
Then  he  let  loose  the  winds  he  created,  the  seven, 
To  destroy  the  life3  of  Tiamat,  they  followed  after  him. 

Marduk,  taking  his  most  powerful  weapon  in  his  hand,4 
mounts  his  chariot,  which  is  driven  by  fiery  steeds.  The 
picture  thus  furnished  of  the  god,  standing  upright  in  his 
chariot,  with  his  weapons  hung  about  him  and  the  seven  winds 
following  in  his  wake,  is  most  impressive. 

He  makes  straight  for  the  hostile  camp.  The  sight  of  the 
god  inspires  terror  on  all  sides. 

The  lord  comes  nearer  with  his  eye  fixed  upon  Tiamat, 
Piercing  with  his  glance  (?)  Kingu  her  consort. 

Kingu  starts  back  in  alarm.  He  cannot  endure  the  '  majestic 
halo'  which  surrounds  Marduk.  Kingu's  associates  —  the 
monsters  —  are  terrified  at  their  leader's  discomfiture.  Tiamat 
alone  does  not  lose  her  courage. 

Marduk,  brandishing  his  great  weapon,  addresses  Tiamat: 

Why  hast  thou  set  thy  mind  upon  stirring  up  destructive  contest? 

1  /.(..  that  a  wind  might  nut  carry  her  off. 

2  Adding  three  to  the  ordinary  winds  from  the  four  directions. 

3  For  the  explanation  oi  tin-  term  used  in  tin-  original  —  kirbish  —  see  Delitzsch's 
excellent  remarks,  Babylonische  Weltschopfnngsepos,  pp.  i  32-134. 

>  Lit., '  storm.'  —  perhaps  the  thunderbolt,  as  Delitzsch  suggests. 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE  BABYLONIANS.  427 

He  reproaches  her  for  the  hatred  she  has  shown  towards  the 
gods,  and  boldly  calls  her  out  to  the  contest : 

Stand  up !   I  and  thou,  come  let  us  fight. 
Tiamat's  rage  at  this  challenge  is  superbly  pictured : 

When  Tiamat  heard  these  words 

She  acted  as  possessed,  her  senses  left  her; 

Tiamat  shrieked  wild  and  loud, 

Trembling  and  shaking  down  to  her  foundations. 

She  pronounced  an  incantation,  uttered  her  sacred  formula. 

Marduk  is  undismayed: 

Then    Tiamat   and    Marduk,  chief   of   the    gods,  advanced   towards   one 

another. 
They  advanced  to  the  contest,  drew  nigh  for  fight. 

The  fight  and  discomfiture  of  Tiamat  are  next  described: 

The  lord  spread  out  his  net  in  order  to  enclose  her. 

The  destructive  wind,  which  was  behind  him,  he  sent  forth  into  her  face. 

As  Tiamat  opened  her  mouth  full  wide, 

He  1  drove  in  the  destructive  wind,  so  that  she  could  not  close  her  lips. 

The  strong  winds  inflated  her  stomach. 

Her  heart  was  beset,2  she  opened  still  wider  her  mouth,3 

He  seized  the  spear  and  plunged  it  into  her  stomach, 

He  pierced  her  entrails,  he  tore  through  her  heart, 

He  seized  hold  of  her  and  put  an  end  to  her  life, 

He  threw  down  her  carcass  and  stepped  upon  her. 


The  method  employed  by  Marduk  is  so  graphically  described 
that  no  comment  is  necessary.  After  having  vanquished  Tia- 
mat, the  valiant  Marduk  attacks  her  associates.  They  try  to  flee, 
but  he  captures  them  all  —  including  Kingu  —  without  much 
difficulty  and  puts  them  into  his  great  net.     Most  important  of 

1  Marduk. 

2  She  lost  her  reason. 

3  Gasping,  as  it  were,  for  breath. 


42S  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

all,  he  tears  the  tablets  of  fate  from  Kingu  and  places  them  on 
his  breast.  This  act  marks  the  final  victory.  Henceforth,  the 
gods  with  Marduk — and  no  longer  Tiamat  and  her  brood  - 
decree  the  fate  of  the  universe.  There  is  great  rejoicing  among 
the  gods,  who  heap  presents  and  offerings  upon  Marduk.  As 
the  vanquisher  of  chaos,  Marduk  is  naturally  singled  out  to 
be  the  establisher  of  the  fixed  form  and  order  of  the  universe. 
The  close  of  the  fourth  tablet  describes  this  work  of  the  god, 
and  the  subject  is  continued  in  the  following  ones.  Unfor- 
tunately, these  tablets  are  badly  preserved,  so  that  we  are  far  from 
having  a  complete  view  of  the  various  acts  of  Marduk.  He 
begins  by  taking  the  carcass  of  Tiamat  and  cutting  it  in  half. 

He  cuts  her  like  one  does  a  flattened  fish  into  two  halves. 

Previous  to  this  he  had  trampled  upon  her  and  smashed  her 
skull,  as  we  are  expressly  told,  so  that  the  comparison  of  the 
monster,  thus  pressed  out,  to  a  flattened  fish  is  appropriate. 

He  splits  her  lengthwise. 

The  one  half  lie  fashioned  as  a  covering  for  the  heavens, 
Attaching  a  bolt  and  placing  there  a  guardian. 
With  orders  not  to  permit  the  waters  to  come  out. 

It  is  evident  that  the  canopy  of  heaven  is  meant.  Such  is 
the  enormous  size  of  Tiamat  that  one-half  of  her  body  flattened 
out  so  as  to  serve  as  a  curtain,  is  stretched  across  the  heavens 
to  keep  the  '  upper  waters  ' — '  the  waters  above  the  firmament' 
as  the  Book  of  Genesis  puts  it  —  from  coming  down.  To 
ensure  the  execution  of  this  design  a  bolt  is  drawn  in  front  of 
llic  canopy  and  a  guardian  placed  there,  like  at. a  city  wall,  to 
prevent  any  one  or  anything  from  coming  out. 

This  act  corresponds  closely  to  the  creation  of  a  "firmament" 
in  the  first  chapter  of  Genesis.  The  interpretation  is  borne  out 
by  the  statement  of  Alexander  Polyhistor  who,  quoting  from 
Berosus,  states  that  out  of  one-half  of  Tiamat  the  heavens  were 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE  BABYLONIANS.  429 

made.1  The  further  statement  that  out  of  the  other  half  the 
earth  was  fashioned  is  not  definitely  stated  in  our  version  of 
the  creation.     The  narrative  proceeds  as  follows  : 

He  passed  through  the  heavens,  he  inspected  the  expanse.2 

To  understand  this  phrase,  we  must  consider  the  general 
character  of  the  "  epic,"  which  is,  as  we  have  already  seen,  a 
composite  production,  formed  of  popular  elements  and  of  more 
advanced  speculations.  The  popular  element  is  the  interpre- 
tation of  the  storms  and  rains  that  regularly  visit  the  Euphrates 
Valley  before  the  summer  season  sets  in,  as  a  conflict  between 
a  monster  and  the  solar  deity  Marduk.  After  a  struggle,  winds 
at  last  drive  the  waters  back  ;  Tiamat  is  vanquished  by  the 
entrance  of  the  'bad  wind'  into  her  body.  The  sun  appears  in 
the  heavens  and  runs  across  the  expanse,  passing  in  his  course 
over  the  entire  vault.  The  conflict,  which  in  the  scholastic  system 
of  the  theologians  is  placed  at  the  beginning  of  things,  is  in 
reality  a  phenomenon  of  annual  occurrence.  The  endeavor  to 
make  Marduk  more  than  what  he  originally  was  —  a  solar  deity 
—  leads  to  the  introduction  of  a  variety  of  episodes  that  properly 
belong  to  a  different  class  of  deities.  For  all  that,  the  orignal 
role  of  Marduk  is  not  obscured.  Marduk's  passage  across  the 
heavens  is  a  trace  of  the  popular  phases  of  the  nature  myth, 
and  while  in  one  sense,  it  is  appropriately  introduced  after  the 
fashioning  of  the  expanse,  it  more  properly  follows  immediately 
upon  the  conflict  with  Tiamat.  In  short,  we  have  reached  a 
point  in  the  narrative  where  the  nature  myth  symbolizing  the 
annual  succession  of  the  seasons  blends  with  a  cosmological 
system  which  is  the  product  of  comparatively  advanced  schools 
of  thought,  in  such  a  manner  as  to  render  it  difficult  to  draw 
the  line  where  myth  ends  and  cosmological  system  begins.     For 

1  Cory's  Ancient  Fragments,  p.  49. 

2  Lit.,  '  places,'  here  used  as  a  synonym  for  '  heavens,'  as  an  Assyrian  commen- 
tator expressly  states.  See  Delitzsch's  remarks  {Babylonische  Weltschopfitngsepos, 
P-  '47)  against  Jensen's  and  Zimmern's  interpretation. 


430  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

the  moment,  the  nature  myth  controls  the  course  of  the  nar- 
rative. The  sun,  upon  running  its  course  across  the  heavens, 
appears  to  drop  into  the  great  ocean,  which  the  Babylonians,  in 
common  with  many  ancient  nations,  imagined  to  surround  and 
to  pass  underneath  the  earth. 

Hence  the  next  act  undertaken  by  Marduk  is  the  regulation 
of  the  course  of  this  subterranean  sea.  The  name  given  to  this 
sea  was  Apsu.  Marduk  however  does  not  create  the  Apsu. 
It  is  in  existence  at  the  beginning  of  things,  but  he  places  it 
under  the  control  of  Ea. 

In  front  of  Apsu,  he  prepared  the  dwelling  of  Nu-dimmud.1 

This  Apsu,  as  we  learn  from  other  sources,2  flows  on  all  sides 
of  the  earth,  and  since  it  also  fills  the  hollow  under  the  earth, 
the  latter  in  reality  rests  upon  the  Apsu.  Ea  is  frequently  called 
"  the  lord  of  Apsu,"  but  the  creation  epic,  in  assigning  to  Mar- 
duk the  privilege  of  preparing  the  dwelling  of  Ea,  reverses  the 
true  order  of  things,  which  may  still  be  seen  in  the  common 
belief  that  made  Marduk  the  son  of  Ea.  Marduk,  the  sun 
rising  up  out  of  the  ocean,  becomes  the  offspring  of  Ea,  and 
even  the  political  supremacy  of  Marduk  could  not  set  aside  the 
prerogatives  of  Ea  in  the  popular  mind.  In  the  cosmological 
system,  however,  as  developed  in  the  schools,  such  an  attempt 
was  made.  While  recognizing  the  '  deep  '  as  the  domain  of  Ea, 
the  theologians  saved  Marduk' s  honor  by  having  him  take  a 
part  in  fixing  Ea's  dwelling  and  in  determining  its  limitations. 

With  the  carcass  of  Tiamat  stretched  across  the  upper  firma- 
ment and  safely  guarded,  and  with  the  Apsu  under  control,  the 
way  is  clear  for  the  formation  of  the  earth.  This  act  in  the 
drama  of  creation  is  referred  to  in  the  following  lines,  though 
in  a  manner,  that  is  not  free  from  obscurity.  The  earth  is 
pictured  as  a  great  structure  placed  over  the  Apsu  and  corre- 
sponding in  dimension  with  it  —  at  least  in  one  direction. 

1  I.e.,  Ea.     See  above,  p.  424,  note  3. 

-  The  complete  prooi  is  brought  by  Jensen.  Kosmologie,  pp.  246-253. 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  431 

The  lord  measured  out  the  structure  of  Apsu. 
Corresponding  to  it,  he  fashioned  a  great  structure  1  Esharra. 

Esharra  is  a  poetical  designation  of  the  earth  and  signifies, 
as  Jensen  has  satisfactorily  shown,  "  house  of  fullness"  2  or 
"  house  of  fertility."  The  earth  is  regarded  as  a  great  struc- 
ture, and  placed  as  it  is  over  the  Apsu,  its  size  is  dependent 
upon  the  latter.  Its  measurement  from  one  end  to  the  other 
cannot  exceed  the  width  of  the  Apsu,  nor  can  it  be  any  nar- 
rower. The  ends  of  the  earth  span  the  great  Apsu.  The  follow- 
ing line  specifies  the  shape  given  to  Esharra  : 

The  great  structure  Esharra,  which  he  made  as  a  heavenly  vault. 

The  earth  is  not  a  sphere  according  to  Babylonian  ideas,  but 
a  hollow  hemisphere  having  an  appearance  exactly  like  the 
vault  of  heaven,  but  placed  in  position  beneath  the  heavenly 
canopy.  As  a  hemisphere  it  suggests  the  picture  of  a  mountain, 
rising  at  one  end,  mounting  to  a  culminating  point,  and  de- 
scending at  the  other  end.  Hence  by  the  side  of  Esharra, 
another  name  by  which  the  earth  was  known  was  Ekur,  that 
is,  '  the  mountain  house.' 

Diodorus  Seculus,  in  speaking  of  the  Babylonian  cosmology, 
employs  a  happy  illustration.  He  says  that  according  to  Baby- 
lonian notions  the  world  is  a  "  boat  turned  upside  down."  The 
kind  of  boat  meant  is,  as  Lenormant  recognized,3  the  deep-bot- 
tomed round  skiff  with  curved  edges  that  is  still  used  for 
carrying  loads  across  and  along  the  Euphrates  and  Tigris,  the 
same  kind  of  boat  that  the  compilers  of  Genesis  had  in  view 
when  describing  Noah's  Ark.  The  appearance  in  outline  thus 
presented  by  the  three  divisions  of  the  universe — the  heavens, 
the  earth,  and  the  waters  —  would  be  that  of  two  heavy  rain- 

1  To  render  the  word  used  as  "  Palace"  (so  Delitzsch),  while  not  incorrect,  is  some- 
what misleading. 

2  Kosmologie,  p.  199. 

3  Magie  und  Wahrsagekunst  der  Chaldaer,  p.  163. 


432  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

bows,  one  beneath  the  other  at  some  distance  apart,  resting 
upon  a  large  body  of  water  that  flows  around  the  horizons  of 
both  rainbows,  and  also  fills  the  hollow  of  the  second  one.1 
The  upper  '  rainbow  '  is  formed  by  one-half  of  the  carcass  of 
Tiamat  stretched  across  in  semi-circular  shape;  the  lower  one 
is  the  great  structure  Esharra  made  by  Marduk,  while  the  Apsu 
underneath  is  the  dwelling  of  Ea.  The  creation  epic,  it  may  be 
noted  once  more,  takes  much  for  granted.  Its  chief  aim  being 
to  glorify  Marduk,  but  little  emphasis  is  laid  upon  details  of 
interest  to  us.  The  parcelling  out  of  these  three  divisions 
among  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea  is  therefore  merely  alluded  to  in  the 
closing  line  of  the  fourth  tablet : 

lie  established  the  districts2  of  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea. 

The  narrative  assumes  what  we  know  from  other  sources, 
that  the  heavens  constitute  the  domain  of  Anu,  Esharra  belongs 
to  Bel,  while  Apsu  belongs  to  Ea. 

The  mention  of  the  triad  takes  us  away  from  popular  myth 
to  the  scholastic  system  as  devised  by  the  theologians.  The 
establishment  of  the  triad  in  full  control  marks  the  introduction 
of  fixed  order  into  the  universe.  All  traces  of  Tiamat  have  dis- 
appeared. Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea  symbolize  the  eternal  laws  of  the 
universe. 

There  are,  as  we  have  seen,  two  factors  involved  in  the  role 
assigned  to  Marduk  in  the  version  of  the  creation  epic  under 
consideration, — one  the  original  character  of  the  god  as  a  solar 
deity,  the  other  the  later  position  of  the  god  as  the  head  of  the 
Babylonian  pantheon.  In  the  '  epic,'  the  fight  of  Marduk  with 
Tiamat  belongs  to  Marduk  as  a  solar  deity.  The  myth  is 
based,  as  was  above  suggested,3  upon  the  annual  phenomenon 
witnessed  in  Babylonia  when  the  whole  valley  is  flooded  and 

i  See  the  illustration  in  Jensen's  Kosmologie,  pi.  3. 

2  The  wend  used  also  means  "  cities."  A  Babylonian  district  is  naught  but  an 
extended  city.  3  See  p.  429. 


THE    COSMOLOGY   OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  433 

storms  sweep  across  the  plains.  The  sun  is  obscured.  A 
conflict  is  going  on  between  the  waters  and  storms,  on  the  one 
hand,  and  the  sun,  on  the  other  hand.  The  latter  finally  is 
victorious.  Marduk  subdues  Tiamat,  fixes  limitations  to  the 
'  upper  and  lower  waters,'  and  triumphantly  marches  across 
the  heavens  from  one  end  to  the  other,  as  general  overseer. 

This  nature  myth  was  admirably  adapted  to  serve  as  the 
point  of  departure  for  the  enlargement  of  the  role  of  Marduk, 
rendered  necessary  by  the  advancement  of  the  god  to  the  head 
of  the  pantheon.  Everything  had  to  be  ascribed  to  Marduk. 
Not  merely  humanity,  but  the  gods  also  had  to  acknowledge, 
and  acknowledge  freely,  the  supremacy  of  Marduk. 

The  solar  deity  thus  becomes  a  power  at  whose  command  the 
laws  of  the  universe  are  established,  the  earth  created  and  all 
that  is  on  it.  In  thus  making  Marduk  the  single  creator,  the 
theologians  were  as  much  under  the  influence  of  Marduk's 
political  supremacy,  as  they  helped  to  confirm  that  supremacy 
by  their  system.  With  this  object  in  view,  the  annual  phenom- 
enon was  transformed  into  an  account  of  what  happened  'once 
upon  a  time.' 

What  impressed  the  thinkers  most  in  the  universe  was  the 
regular  working  of  the  laws  of  nature.  Ascribing  these  laws  to 
Marduk,  they  naturally  pictured  the  beginnings  of  things  as 
a  lawless  period.  Into  the  old  and  popular  Marduk-Tiamat 
nature  myth,  certain  touches  were  thus  introduced  that  changed 
its  entire  character.  This  once  done,  it  was  a  comparatively 
simple  matter  to  follow  up  the  conflict  of  Marduk  and  Tiamat 
by  a  series  of  acts  on  Marduk's  part,  completing  the  work  of 
general  creation.  The  old  nature  myth  ended  with  the  con- 
quest of  the  rains  and  storm  and  the  establishment  of  the  sun's 
regular  course,  precisely  as  the  deluge  story  in  Genesis,  which 
contains  echoes  of  the  Marduk-Tiamat  myth,  ends  with  the 
promulgation  of  the  fixed  laws  of  the  universe.1 

1  Gen.  viii.  22, 


434  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

What  follows  upon  this  episode  in  the  Babylonian  epic  is  the 
elaboration  of  the  central  theme,  worked  out  in  the  schools  of 
Babylonian  thought  and  intended,  on  the  one  hand,  to  illus- 
trate Marduk's  position  as  creator  and,  on  the  other,  to  formu- 
late the  details  of  the  cosmological  system. 

With  the  fifth  tablet,  therefore,  we  leave  the  domain  of  popular 
myth  completely  and  pass  into  the  domain  of  cosmological 
speculation.  Fragmentary  as  the  fifth  tablet  is,  enough  is  pre- 
served to  show  that  it  assumes  the  perfection  of  the  zodiacal 
system  of  the  Babylonian  schools  and  the  complete  regulation  1 
of  the  calendar.  In  this  zodiacal  system,  as  has  been  intimated 
and  as  will  be  more  fully  set  forth  in  a  special  chapter,  the 
planets  and  stars  are  identified  with  the  gods.  The  gods  have 
their  '  stations '  and  their  '  pictures  '  in  the  starry  sky.  The 
stars  are  the  '  drawings'  or  '  designs  of  heaven.'  It  is  Marduk 
again  who  is  represented  as  arranging  these  stations  : 

He  established  the  stations  for  the  great  gods.2 

The  stars,  their  likeness,3  he  set  up  as  constellations.4 

He  fixed  the  year  and  marked  the  divisions.5 

The  twelve  months  he  divided  among  three  stars. 

From  the  beginning  of  the  year  till  the  close  (?) 

He  established  the  station  of  Nibir6  to  indicate  their  boundary. 

So  that  there  might  be  no  deviation  nor  wandering  away  from  the  course 

He  established  with  him,7  the  stations  of  Bel  and  Ea. 

An  epitome  of  the  astronomical  science  of  the  Babylonians  is 
comprised  in  these  lines.     The  gods  being  identified  with  -stars 

1  See  above,  p.  370,  and  chapter  xxii. 

-  /.<'.,  for  each  of  the  great  gods.  3  Le.,  of  the  gods. 

4  A  particular  group  of  stars  —  the  mashi  stars  —  is  mentioned,  but  the  term 
seems  to  be  used  in  a  rather  general  sense.  I  cannot  share  Uelitzsch's  extreme 
skepticism  with  regard  to  the  interpretation  of  the  fifth  tablet.  Jensen  seems  to  have 
solved  the  chief  difficulties. 

5  Jensen  and  Zimmern  interpret  "he  drew  the  pictures,"  referring  the  phrase  to 
the  contours  of  the  stars  ;  but  the  parallelism  speaks  in  favor  of  connecting  the 
words  with  the  "  year."     The  divisions  of  the  year  or  seasons  seem  to  be  meant. 

6  I.c,  the  planet  Marduk,  or  Jupiter.  "  I.e.,  with  Nibir. 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  435 

and  each  of  the  latter  having  its  place  in  the  heavens  '  to  estab- 
lish the  stations  for  the  great  gods'  is  equivalent  to  putting  the 
stars  in  position.  The  regulation  of  the  year  forms  part  of  the 
astronomical  science.  The  three  stars  that  constitute  'divisions' 
to  aid  in  marking  off  the  months  are  Nibir,  Bel,  and  Ea.  That 
the  Babylonians  had  such  a  system  as  is  here  outlined  is  con- 
firmed by  Diodorus  Seculus.1  The  position  of  Nibir,  or  Jupiter, 
whose  course  keeps  closer  to  the  ecliptic  than  that  of  any  other 
planet,  served  as  an  important  guide  in  calendrical  calculations. 
The  stars  are  represented  as  clinging  to  their  course  through 
maintaining  their  relationship  to  Nibir,  while  at  the  side  of 
Nibir  and  as  additional  guides,  Bel  is  identified  with  the  north 
pole  of  the  equator  and  Ea  with  a  star  in  the  extreme  southern 
heavens,  to  be  sought  for,  perhaps,  in  the  constellation  Argo. 
The  description  concludes  : 

He  attached  large  gates  to  both  sides, 
Made  the  bolt  secure  to  the  left  and  right. 

The  heavens  are  thus  made  firm  by  two  gates,  fastened  with 
bolts  and  placed  at  either  end.  Through  one  of  these  gates 
the  sun  passes  out  in  the  morning,  and  at  evening  enters  into 
the  other.  But  the  most  important  body  in  the  heavens  is  the 
moon.     Its  functions  are  described  in  an  interesting  way : 

In  the  midst2  he  made  the  zenith3  (?) 

Nannar4  he  caused  to  go  forth  and  handed  over  to  him5  the  night. 

He  fixed  him5  as  the  luminary  of  night  to  mark  off  the  days. 

The  passage  is  made  clear  by  a  reference  to  the  Book  of 
Genesis,  i.  16,  where  we  are  told  that  the  moon  was  created  'for 
the  rule  of  night.'  A  distinction  between  the  Biblical  and  the 
cuneiform  cosmology  at  this  point  is  no  less  significant.     While 

1  See  Jensen,  Kosmologie,  p.  354.  George  Smith  already  interpreted  the  passage 
in  this  way.  -  I.e.,  of  the  heavens.     Delitzsch  renders  "  Schwerpunkt." 

3  Text  elati.  Jensen,  Zimmern,  and  Halevy  translate  "  zenith,"  but  Delitzsch 
questions  this.  4  The  moon-god.  5  I.e.,  the  moon, 


436  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

according  to  Babylonian  ideas,  the  moon  alone,  or  at  most  the 
moon  with  the  stars,  regulates  the  days,  the  Hebrew  version 
makes  the  moon  and  sun  together  the  basis  for  the  regulation 
of  the  '  days  and  years.'  The  sun  according  to  Babylonian 
notions  does  not  properly  belong  to  the  heavens,  since  it  passes 
daily  beyond  the  limits  of  the  latter.  The  sun,  therefore,  plays 
an  insignificant  part  in  the  calendrical  system  in  comparison 
with  the  moon. 

Marduk    addresses  the    moon,   specifying    its    duties,  what 
position    it   is   to   occupy  towards   the   sun    at  certain  periods 
during  the  monthly  course,  and  the   like.     The  tablet  at  this 
point  becomes  defective,  and  before  the  address  comes  to  an 
end,  we  are  left  entirely  in  the  lurch.     To  speculate  as  to  the 
further  contents  of  the  fifth  tablet  and  of  the   sixth  (of  which 
nothing  has  as  yet  been  found)  seems  idle.    Zimmern  supposes 
that  after  the  heavenly  phenomena  had  been  disposed  of,  the 
formation  of  the  dry  land   and  of  the  seas  was  taken  up,  and 
Delitzsch  is  of  the  opinion  that  in  the  sixth  tablet  the  creation 
of  plants  and  trees  and  animals  was  also  recounted.     1  venture 
to  question  whether  the  creation  of  the  '  dry  land  and  seas '  was 
specifically   mentioned.       Esharra,  the    earth,   is   in   existence 
and  the  Apsu  appears  to  include  all  waters,  but  that  the  epic 
treated  of  the  creation  of  plant  and  animal  life  and  then  of  the 
creation  of  man  is  eminently  likely.     We  have  indeed  a  frag- 
ment of  a  tablet 1  in  which  the  creation  of  the  '  cattle  of  the 
field,  beasts  of  the  field,  and  creeping  things  of  the  field '  is 
referred  to;  but  since  it  is  the  'gods  who  in  unison'  are  there 
represented  as  having  created  the  animal  kingdom,  it  is  hardly 
likely  that  the  fragment  forms  part  of  our  '  epic '  in  which  all 
deeds  are  ascribed  to  Marduk.     It  belongs  in  all  probability  to 
a  different  cosmological  version,  but  so  much  can  be  concluded 
from  it,  that  the  Babylonians  ascribed  the  creation  of  animals 
to  some  divine  power  or  powers  ;  and  that  therefore  our  'epic' 
i  Published  by  Delitzsch,  Assyrischc  Lesestucke  (3d  edition),  p.  94. 


THE    COSMOLOGY   OF   THE    BABYLONIANS.  437 

must  have  contained  a  section  in  which  this  act  was  assigned 
to  Marduk. 

A  similar  variation  exists  with  reference  to  the  tradition  of 
the  creation  of  mankind.  There  are  distinct  traces  that  the 
belief  was  current  in  parts  of  Babylonia  which  made  Ea  the 
creation  of  mankind.1  Ea,  it  will  be  recalled,  is  the  'god  of 
humanity  '  par  excellence,  and  yet  in  the  seventh  (and  probably 
closing)  tablet  of  the  series,  Marduk  is  spoken  of  as  the  one 
"who  created  mankind."2 

Variant  traditions  of  this  kind  point  to  the  existence  of 
various  centers  of  culture  and  thought  in  rivalry  with  one 
another.  The  great  paean  to  Marduk  would  have  been  sadly 
incomplete  had  it  not  contained  an  account  of  the  creation  of 
mankind  —  the  crowning  work  of  the  universe  —  by  the  head  of 
the  Babylonian  pantheon.  It  is  possible,  therefore,  that  a  tablet 
containing  the  address  of  a  deity  to  mankind  belongs  to  our 
series 3  and  embodies  orders  and  warnings  given  by  Marduk 
after  the  creation  of  man,  just  as  he  addresses  the  moon  after 
establishing  it  in  the  heavens.  Purity  of  heart  is  enjoined  as 
pleasing  to  the  deity.  Prayer  and  supplication  and  prostration 
are  also  commanded.     It  is  said  that 

Fear  of  god  begets  mercy, 
Sacrifice  prolongs  life, 
And  prayer  dissolves  sin. 

The  tablet  continues  in  this  strain.  It  is  perhaps  not  the  kind 
of  address  that  we  would  expect  Marduk  to  make  after  the  act 
of  creation,  but  for  the  present  we  must  content  ourselves  with 
this  conjecture,  as  also  with  the  supposition  that  the  creation  of 
mankind  constituted  the  final  act  in  the  great  drama  in  which 
Marduk  is  the  hero. 

When  Marduk's  work  is  finished,  the  Igigi  gather  around 
him  in  adoration.     This  scene  is  described  in  a  tablet  which  for 

1  See  the  proof  as  put  together  by  Jensen,  Kosmologie,  pp.  293,  294. 

-  Line  15.  s  So  Delitzsch,  Babylonische  Wcltschopfuiigsefos,  pp.  19,  20. 


43S  BABYLONIAN-  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

the  present  we  may  regard  x  as  the  close  of  the  series.  No  less 
than  fifty  names  are  bestowed  upon  him  by  the  gods,  the 
number  fifty  corresponding  according  to  some  traditions  to  the 
number  of  the  Igigi.  Marduk  accordingly  absorbs  the  qualities 
of  all  the  gods.  Such  is  the  purpose  of  this  tablet.  The 
diction  is  at  times  exceedingly  impressive. 

God  of  pure  life,  they  called  [him]   in  the  third  place,  the  bearer  of  puri- 
fication. 
God  of  favorable  wind,2  lord  of  response  3  and  of  mercy, 
Creator  of  abundance  and  fullness,  granter  of  blessings, 
Who  increases  the  things  that  were  small, 
Whose  favorable  wind  we  experienced  in  sore  distress. 
Thus  let  them4  speak  and  glorify  and  be  obedient  to  him. 

The  gods  recall  with  gratitude  Marduk's  service  in  vanquish- 
ing Tiamat.  Marduk  is  also  praised  for  the  mercy  he  showed 
towards  the  associates  of  Tiamat,  whom  he  merely  captured 
without  putting  them  to  death. 

As  the  god  of  the  shining  crown  in  the  fourth  place,  let  them  [i.e.,  man- 
kind] exalt  him. 
The  lord  of  cleansing  incantation,  the  restorer  of  the  dead  to  life, 
Who  showed  mercy  towards  the  captured  gods, 
Removed  the  yoke  from  the  gods  who  were  hostile  to  him. 

A  later  fancy  identified  the  '  captured  gods  '  with  eleven  of  the 
heavenly  constellations.5 

Mankind  is  enjoined  not  to  forget  Marduk 

Who  created  mankind  out  of  kindness  towards  them, 
The  merciful  one,  with  whom  is  the  power  of  giving  life. 
May  his  deeds  remain  and  nev'er  be  forgotten 
By  humanity,  created  by  his  hands. 

1  Following  Delitzsch,  Babylonische  Weltschoffungsefos^  pp.  20,  21.  I  pass 
over  two  fragments  which  Delitzsch  adds  to  our  '  epic'  They  are  not  sufficiently 
clear  to  he  utilized  for  our  purposes.  Delitzsch  may  be  right  with  regard  to  no.  20, 
but  if  so,  it  forms  part  or  another  version  of  the  Marduk-Tiamat  episode.  No.  19, 
treating  of  the  bow  of  Marduk  (?),  does  not  seem  to  belong  to  our  series. 

2  A  standing  phrase  for  "  favor  "  in  general. 

8  To  prayer.  i  The  gods  or  the  Igigi. 

&  See  p.  4S6  and  Gunkel's  note,  Schbffung  u>id  Chaos,  p.  26. 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF  THE  BABYLONIANS.  439 

Among  other  names  assigned  to  him  are  '  the  one  who  knows 
the  heart  of  the  gods,'  '  who  gathers  the  gods  together,'  '  who 
rules  in  truth  and  justice.'  In  allusion  again  to  his  contest 
with  Tiamat,  he  is  called  '  the  destroyer  of  the  enemy  and  of  all 
wicked  ones,'  '  who  frustrates  their  plans.' 

With  the  help  of  a  pun  upon  his  having  '  pierced '  Tiamat,  he 
is  called  Nibir,  i.e.,  the  planet  Jupiter.1 

Nibir  be  his  name,  who  took  hold  of  the  life  of  Tiamat. 
The  course  of  the  stars  of  heaven  may  he  direct. 
May  he  pasture  all  of  the  gods  like  sheep.2 

But  the  climax  is  reached  when,  upon  hearing  what  the  Igigi 
have  done,  the  great  gods,  father  Bel  and  father  Ea  cheerfully 
bestow  their  own  names  upon  Marduk. 

Because  he  created  the  heavens  and  formed  the  earth 

'  Lord  of  Lands  ' 3  father  Bel  called  his  name. 

When  he  heard  of  all  the  names  that  the  Igigi  bestowed 

Ea's  liver  rejoiced 

That  they  had  bestowed  exalted  names  upon  his  son. 

"  He  as  I  —  Ea  be  his  name. 

The  control  of  my  commands  be  entrusted  to  him. 

To  him  my  orders  shall  be  transmitted." 

The  historical  background  to  this  transference  of  the  name 
of  Bel  has  been  dwelt  upon  in  a  previous  chapter.4  This 
"  Marduk  hymn  "  is  to  justify  the  transference  of  the  role  of  the 
'  older  Bel  of  Nippur  to  the  younger  god  Marduk.  Throughout 
the  tablet  describing  the  contest  of  Marduk  with  Tiamat,  Mar- 
duk is  called  Bel,5  and  while  this  name  is  used  in  the  generic 
sense  of  "lord,"  the  transference  of  the  name  of  Bel  to  Marduk 
is  evidently  introduced  to  account  for  his  assuming  the  prerog- 

1  See  above,  p.  434.  The  play  is  between  Nibir  (as  though  from  the  stem  cberti) 
and  itcbbiru  ("  he  pierced  "),  a  form  of  cberit,  and  meaning  '  to  pass  through.' 

-  This  metaphor  is  carried  over  into  astronomical  science.  The  planets  are 
known  as  "  wandering  sheep."     See  p.  459.  3  Bel  matate.  4  See  p.  118. 

6  Similarly  in  another  version  of  the  contest  published  by  Delitzsch,  Assyr.  If  "6r- 
fcrbitch,  p.  -;qo. 


440  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

atives  belonging  to  another  god.  The  original  '  lord  '  was  En-lil 
of  Nippur.  The  sacred  significance  of  ancient  Nippur  made 
its  patron  deity  the  most  important  rival  of  Marduk.  Bel 
could  not  be  disposed  of  as  Ea,  who  by  virtue  of  his  mythological 
relationships  to  Marduk  —  a  solar  deity — could  be  retained  as 
the  father  of  Marduk.  There  was  nothing  left  but  for  Marduk 
to  take  the  place  of  Bel.  The  constant  introduction  of  the 
epithet  '  Bel '  into  the  Tiamat  story  points  to  an  older  version 
in  which  Bel  was  the  hero.  In  popular  traditions,  Bel  continued 
to  be  pictured  as  armed  with  mighty  weapons,1  and,  though  ready 
to  inflict  severe  punishment  for  disobedience  to  his  commands, 
he  engages  in  contests  for  the  benefit  of  mankind.  The  earth 
being  his  special  sphere  of  action,  what  more  natural  than  that 
he  should  have  had  a  prominent  share  in  adapting  it  as  a  habi- 
tation for  mankind.  He  would  be  directly  interested  in  fighting 
the  powers  of  darkness. 

In  the  weapons  that  Marduk  employs,  particularly  the  light- 
ning and  the  winds  which  belong  to  an  atmospheric  god  rather 
than  a  solar  deity,  we  may  discern  traces  of  the  older  narrative 
which  has  been  combined  with  the  Marduk-Tiamat  nature  myth.3 
It  may  be  that  Kingu  represents  Bel's  particular  rival.  In  the  nar- 
rative, it  will  be  recalled,  the  contest  with  Tiamat  is  sharply  sep- 
arated from  that  with  Kingu  and  his  associates.  The  division 
that  thus  suggests  itself  between  Marduk  and  Tiamat,  on  the  one 
hand,  Bel  and  the  monsters  with  Kingu  at  their  head,  on  the 
other,  may  certainly  be  termed  a  natural  one.  The  solar  deity 
Marduk  disposed  of  the  storms  and  rains  of  the  winter,  whereas, 
a  god  of  "that  which  is  below,"3  i.e.,  the  earth  and  the 
atmosphere  immediately  above  the  earth,  would  appropriately 
be  represented  as  ridding  the  earth  of  the  monsters  in  order  to 

1  See  p.  54. 

2  Tiele  {Gesch.  der  Religion  im  Alterthwn,  I.  176)  assigns  to  Marduk  a  double 
character,  making  him  both  a  god  of  light  and  a  god  of  storms,  but  1  venture  to  think 
that  the  latter  attribute  represents  the  transference  of  En-HFs  power  to  Marduk. 

•!  So  Bel  is  called  in  contrast  to  Ann.     See  ]>.  53. 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE  BABYLONIANS.  441 

prepare  it  as  a  habitation  for  mankind.  Ea  was  not  such  a 
serious  rival  to  Marduk  as  the  older  Bel.  Political  rivalry 
between  Nippur  and  Babylonia  probably  contributed  towards 
the  disposition  to  have  Marduk  completely  absorb  the  role  of 
Bel,  whereas,  this  rivalry  being  absent  in  the  case  of  Eridu 
(the  original  seat  of  Ea  worship)  and  Babylon,  the  mythological 
relations  between  Ea  and  Marduk  led,  as  already  pointed  out, 
in  a  perfectly  natural  way  to  making  Marduk  the  son  of  Ea. 
Still,  while  cheerfully  acknowledged  by  Ea  as  his  equal,  it  is 
evident  that  in  older  traditions  Ea  was  far  superior  to  Marduk, 
and  the  latter  replaces  Ea  as  he  does  Bel.  The  real  creator 
of  mankind,  according  to  certain  traditions,  is  Ea,  just  as 
in  all  probabilities  a  third  tradition  existed  which  arose 
in  Nippur  giving  to  Bel  that  distinction.  It  is  necessary, 
therefore,  for  Ea  to  declare  that  Marduk's  name  (i.e.,  his 
power)  is  the  same  as  Ea.  The  alteration  of  the  traditions 
is  thus  justified  by  a  harmonistic  theology.  Marduk  has 
triumphed  over  Bel  and  Ea.  The  god  of  Babylon  reigns 
supreme,  his  sway  acknowledged  by  those  whom  he  supplants. 
Marduk's  declaration  that  in  the  event  of  his  vanquishing 
Tiamat  he  will  assume  authority  over  all  the  gods  is  thus 
formally  confirmed.     The  epic  closes  grandiloquently: 

With  fifty  names,  the  great  gods 

According  to  their  fifty  names,  proclaimed  the  supremacy  of  his  course. 

The  compiler  has  added  to  the  epic  what  Delitzsch  appropri- 
ately designates  an  'epilogue,'  —  a  declaration  of  affection  for 
Marduk.  The  epilogue  consists  of  three  stanzas.  All  man- 
kind—  royalty  and  subjects  —  are  called  upon  to  bear  in  mind 
Marduk's  glorious  deeds,  achieved  for  the  benefit  of  the  world. 

Let  the  wise  and  intelligent  together  ponder  over  it. 
Let  the  father  relate  it  and  teach  it  to  his  son.1 

1  One  is  reminded  of  the  Biblical  injunction  with  regard  to  the  Laws  of  Yahwe, 
Deut.  vi.  7  :  "  Thou  shalt  teach  them  to  thy  sons  and  speak  constantly  of  them/' 


442  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

To  leader  and  shepherd  x  be  it  told. 

Let  all  rejoice  in  the  lord  of  gods,  Marduk 

That  he  may  cause  his  land  to  prosper  and  grant  it  peace. 

His  word  is  firm,  his  order  irrevocable. 

What  issues  from  his  mouth,  no  god  can  alter. 

Marduk's  anger,  the  poet  says  in  closing,  terrifies  even  the 
gods,  but  he  is  a  god  upon  whose  mercy  one  may  rely,  though 
he  punishes  the  evil-doer. 

Bearing  in  mind  the  general  nature  of  the  creation  epic 
we  have  discussed,  we  must  of  course  in  our  conclusions 
distinguish  between  those  elements  in  it  which  reflect  the 
intent  of  the  compiler  or  compilers  to  glorify  Marduk  at 
the  expense  of  other  gods  and  such  parts  as  bear  the  stamp 
of  being  generally  accepted  beliefs.  Setting  aside,  there- 
fore, the  special  role  assigned  to  Marduk,  we  find  that  the 
Babylonians  never  developed  a  theory  of  real  beginnings. 
The  erratic  ex  nihilo  was  a  thought  beyond  the  grasp  even  of 
the  schools.  There  was  always  something,  and  indeed  there  was 
always  a  great  deal — as  much  perhaps  at  the  beginning  of 
things  as  at  any  other  time.  But  there  was  no  cosmic  order. 
Instead  of  a  doctrine  of  creation,  we  have  a  doctrine  of  evo- 
lution from  chaos  to  the  imposition  of  eternal  laws.  The 
manifestation  of  these  laws  was  seen  first  of  all  in  the  move- 
ments of  the  heavenly  bodies.  There  was  a  great  expanse, 
presenting  the  appearance  of  a  stretched-out  curtain  or  a 
covering  to  which  the  stars  and  moon  were  attached.  Along 
this  expanse  the  wandering  stars  moved  with  a  certain  regu- 
larity. The  moon,  too,  had  its  course  mapped  out  and  the  sun 
appeared  in  this  expanse  daily,  as  an  overseer,  passing  along 
the  whole  of  it.  This  wonderful  system  was  the  first  to  be 
perfected,  and  to  the  solar  deity,-  which  seemed  to  control 
everything,  was  ascribed  the  distinction  of  having  introduced 
the  heavenly  order.      This  notion  we   may  well  believe  was  of 

1  I.e.,  to  the  kings  who  are  frequently  called  '  shepherds'  in  the  historical  texts. 

2  Or,  according  to  the  earlier  view,  to  an  atmospheric  god. 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE  BABYLONIANS.  443 

popular  origin,  though  elaborated  in  the  schools  to   conform 
to  a  developed  astrological  science. 

The  stars  and  moon  never  passed  beyond  certain  limits,  and, 
accordingly,  the  view  was  developed  which  gave  to  the  canopy 
of  heaven  fixed  boundaries.  At  each  end  of  the  canopy  was  a 
great  gate,  properly  guarded.  Through  one  of  these  the  sun 
passed  in  rising  out  of  the  ocean,  through  the  other  it  passed 
out  when  it  had  run  its  course.  Learned  speculation  could  not 
improve  upon  this  popular  fancy.  As  the  heavens  had  their 
limitations,  so  also  the  great  bodies  of  water  were  kept  in  check 
by  laws,  which,  though  eternal,  were  yet  not  quite  as  inex- 
orable as  those  controlling  the  heavenly  bodies.  The  yearly 
overflow  of  the  Euphrates  and  Tigris  was  too  serious  a  matter  to 
be  overlooked,  and  we  shall  see  in  a  following  chapter1  how 
this  phenomenon  was  interpreted  as  a  rivalry  between  Bel  and 
Ea,  deliberately  caused  by  the  former  in  anger  toward  mankind. 
Still,  as  a  general  thing,  the  '  deep,'  presided  over  by  Ea,  kept 
within  the  limits  assigned  to  it.  The  waters  above  the  canopy 
were  under  rigid  control,  and  the  lower  waters  flowed  around 
the  earth  and  underneath  it,  and  bordered  the  canopy  of 
heaven  at  its  two  ends. 

The  earth  itself  was  a  vast  hollow  structure,  erected  as  a 
"  place  of  fertility  "  under  the  canopy  of  heaven  and  resting 
on  the  great  '  deep.'  Its  vegetation  was  the  gift  of  the  gods. 
'  Fertility  '  summed  up  the  law  fixed  for  the  earth.  Much  as  in 
the  Book  of  Genesis,  "  to  multiply  and  increase  "  was  the  order 
proclaimed  for  the  life  with  which  the  earth  was  filled. 

The  creation  of  mankind  was  the  last  act  in  the  great  drama. 
Assigned  in  some  traditions  to  Ea,  in  others  as  it  would  seem 
to  Bel,  the  transfer  of  the  traditions  to  Marduk  is  the  deliber- 
ate work  of  the  schools  of  theological  thought.  The  essential 
point  for  us  is  that  mankind,  according  to  all  traditions,  is  the 
product  of  the  gods.     In  some  form  or  other,  this  belief  was 

1  "  The  Gilgamesh  Epic." 


444  BAB  YL  ONI  AN- ASS  YRIAN  RBI.  /(//ON. 

popularly  held  everywhere.  Its  original  form,  however,  is  ob- 
scured beyond  recognition  by  the  theory  which  it  is  made  to 
serve. 

A  second  version  of  the  course  of  creation l  agrees  in  the 
main  with  the  first  one,  but  adds  some  points  of  interest.  In 
this  version,  likewise,  Marduk  is  assigned  the  most  important 
role  —  an  evidence  that  it  was  produced  under  similar  influ- 
ences as  the  larger  epic.  So  far  as  preserved,  the  second 
version  differs  from  the  first  in  its  brevity  and  in  the  promi- 
nence given  to  such  themes  as  the  development  of  animal  life 
and  the  growth  of  civilization.  It  fills  out  to  a  certain  de- 
gree the  gaps  in  the  first  version,  due  to  the  fragmentary 
condition  of  the  fifth  tablet  and  the  loss  of  the  sixth.  The 
brevity  of  the  second  version  is  due  in  part  to  the  fact  that 
it  is  introduced  into  an  incantation  text,  and,  what  is  more, 
incidentally  introduced. 

It  begins  as  does  the  larger  epic  with  the  statement  regarding 
the  period  when  the  present  phenomena  of  the  universe  were 
not  yet  in  existence,  but  it  specifies  the  period  in  a  manner 
which  gives  a  somewhat  more  definite  character  to  the  concep- 
tion of  this  ancient  time. 

The  bright  house  of  the  gods  was  not  yet  built  on  the  bright  place, 

No  reed  grew  and  no  tree  was  formed, 

No  brick  was  laid  nor  any  brick  edifice  2  reared, 

No  house  erected,  no  city  built, 

No  city  reared,  no  conglomeration  3  formed. 

Nippur  was  not  reared,  E-Kur4  not  erected. 

Erech  was  not  reared,  E-Anna5  not  erected. 

1  First   published  by   Pinches,  Journal  of  the  Royal  Asiatic  Society,   1891,  pp. 

393-40S. 

2  Clay,  it  will  be  recalled,  was  the  building  material  in  Babylonia. 

3  The  word  in  the  text  is  generally  applied  to  "a  mass"  of  animals,  but  also  to 
human  productions.     See  Delitzsch,  Assyr.  Handwbrterbuch,  p.  467. 

4  Bel's  temple  at  Nippur. 

5  Temple  of  Ishtai  at   Erech  or  Uruk. 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  445 

The  deep1  not  formed,  Eridu2  not  reared. 

The  bright  house,  the  house  of  the  gods  not  yet  constructed  as  a  dwelling. 

The  world  3  was  all  a  sea. 

Again  it  will  be  observed  that  neither  popular  nor  scholastic 
speculation  can  picture  the  beginning  of  things  in  any  other 
way  than  as  an  absence  of  things  characteristic  of  the  order  of 
the  universe. 

The  bright4  house  of  the  gods  corresponds  to  Eshara  and  the 
canopy  of  heaven  in  the  first  version.  The  gods  are  again  identi- 
fied with  the  stars,  and  it  is  in  the  heavens — the  bright  place 
—  that  the  gods  dwell.5  The  reference  to  the  absence  of  vegeta- 
tion agrees  closely  with  the  corresponding  passage  in  the  larger 
creation  epic.  The  limitations  of  the  cosmological  speculations 
of  the  Babylonians  find  a  striking  illustration  in  the  manner  in 
which  the  beginnings  of  human  culture  are  placed  on  a  level 
with  the  beginnings  of  heavenly  and  terrestrial  phenomena. 
Nippur,  Erech,  and  Eridu,  which  are  thus  shown  to  be  the 
oldest  religious  centers  of  the  Euphrates  Valley,  were  indis- 
solubly  associated  in  the  minds  of  the  people  with  the  beginning 
of  order  in  the  universe.  Such  was  the  antiquity  of  those  cities 
as  seats  of  the  great  gods,  Bel,  Ishtar,  and  Ea,  that  the  time 
when  they  did  not  exist  was  not  differentiated  from  the  creation 
of  the  heavens  and  of  plant  life.  This  conception  is  more 
clearly  emphasized  by  the  parallelism  implied  between  Eridu 
and  the  '  deep.'  The  '  formation  '  of  Apsu  corresponds  to  the 
'  structure '  made  by  Marduk  according  to  the  first  version,  as 
the  seat  of  Ea.     The  waters  were  not  created  by  Marduk,  but 

1  I.e.,  Apsu. 

2  City  sacred  to  Ea  at  the  mouth  of  the  Persian  Gulf. 

3  Lit., '  totality  of  lands.' 

*  Zimmern's  rendering  (Gunkel,  Schopfung  und  Chaos,  p.  419)  "sacred"  (instead 
of  '  bright ')  misses  the  point. 

5  Cf.  S.  A.  Smith,  Miscellaneous,  K.  2866,  1.  S,  "the  great  gods  dwelling  in  the 
heaven  of  Anu."  The  reference,  therefore,  cannot  be  to  "the  gathering  place  of  the 
gods,"  where  the  fates  of  mankind  are  decided. 


446  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIC  ION. 

they  were  confined  by  him  within  a  certain  space.  In  a  vague* 
way,  the  '  deep '  itself  rested  in  a  vast  tub.  The  waters  flowed 
freely  and  yet  not  without  limitation. 

The  contest  with  Tiamat  is  not  referred  to  in  this  second 
version,  and  this  may  be  taken  as  an  indication  that  the  '  nature' 
myth  was  not  an  ingredient  part  of  cosmological  speculations, 
but  only  introduced  into  the  first  version  because  of  its  associa- 
tions with  Marduk. 

The  appearance  of  dry  land  is  described  somewhat  vaguely 
as  follows: 

There  was  a  channel J  within  the  sea. 

At  that  time  Eridu  was  erected,  E-Sagila2  was  built, 

E-Sagila  in  the  midst  of  the  '  deep,'  where  the  god  of  the  glorious  abode3 

dwells. 

The  mention  of  the  channel  appears  to  imply  that  the  waters 
were  permitted  to  flow  off  in  a  certain  direction. 

The  conception  would  then  be  similar  to  the  view  expressed 
in  Genesis,  where  the  dry  land  appears  in  consequence  of  the 
waters  being  '  gathered  '  into  one  place.4  The  temple  at  Eridu 
is  regarded  as  synonymous  with  the  city,  as  the  temples  E-Kur 
and  E-Anna  are  synonymous  with  Nippur  and  Erech  respec- 
tively. Eridu  at  the  head  of  the  Persian  Gulf,  which  for  the 
Babylonians  was  the  beginning  of  the  great  'Okeanos'  surround- 
ing the  world,5  is  the  first  dry  land  to  appear  and  hence  the 

i  The  original  has  ratum.  Delitzsch,  Assyr.  Handworterbuch,  p.  663,  compares 
Hebrew  rakat,  ** trough."  Zimmern  (Gunkel,  Schbpfung  und  Chaos,  p.  419)  trans- 
lates" Bewegung,"  but  on  what  grounds  I  do  not  know.  The  passage  is  obscure;  the 
text  possibly  defective. 

-  If  the  reading  E-Sagila  is  original,  it  is  here  used  as  the  name  of  Ea's  temple 
in  Eridu,  but  it  is  of  course  possible  that  E-Sagila  has  been  deliberately  introduced 
to  enhance  the  glory  of  Marduk's  temple  in  Babylon. 

;  Ea.  '  Gen.  i.  9. 

5  See  Haupt,  Wo  lag  das  Parodies,  p.  7  (Ueber  Land  und  Meer,  1894—95,  no- 
15, Sonderabdruck),  who  furnishes  numerous  illustrations  of  the  indefinite  geographi- 
cal notions  of  the  am  ienl   . 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  447 

oldest  place  in  the  world.  At  this  point  in  the  narrative  a  line 
is  interpolated  which  clearly  betrays  the  lateness  of  the  version. 
The  mention  of  E-Sagila  suggests  to  a  Babylonian,  naturally, 
the  great  temple  of  Marduk  in  the  city  of  Babylon — 'the  lofty 
house.'  Local  pride  and  the  desire  to  connect  Babylon  with 
the  beginning  of  things  leads  to  the  insertion  : 

Babylon  was  reared,  E-Sagila  built. 

With  this  mention  of  Babylon,  the  connecting  link  is  estab- 
lished which  leads  easily  to  the  glorification  of  Babylon  and 
Marduk.  The  thought  once  introduced  is  not  abandoned.  The 
rest  of  the  narrative,  so  far  as  preserved,  is  concerned  with 
Marduk.  Eridu  alone  is  beyond  his  jurisdiction.  Everything 
else,  vegetation,  mankind,  rivers,  animals,  and  all  cities,  includ- 
ing even  Nippur  and  Erech,  are  Marduk's  work. 

The  Anunnaki1  he'2  created  together 

And  bestowed  glorious  epithets  upon  the  glorious  city,  the  seat  dear  to 
their  heart. 

The  '  glorious  city  '  is  Eridu,  though  the  compiler  would  have 
us  apply  it  to  Babylon. 

With  the  founding  of  Eridu,  a  limit  was  fixed  for  the  '  deep.' 
The  rest  of  the  dry  land  is  formed  according  to  the  theory  of 
the  writer  by  the  extension  of  this  place. 

Marduk  constructed  an  enclosure  around  the  waters, 
He  made  dust  and  heaped  it  up  within  the  enclosure.3 


The  naivete  of  the  conception  justifies  us  in  regarding  it  as 
of  popular  origin,  incorporated  by  the  theologians  into  their 
system. 

But  this  land  is  created  primarily  for  the  benefit  of  the  gods. 
That  the  gods  might  dwell  in  the  place  dear  to  their  heart. 

1  The  group  of  celestial  beings. 

2  I.e.,  Marduk. 

3  Kead  a-ma-mi. 


448  HAi:  YLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Naturally  not  all  of  the  gods  are  meant,  —  perhaps  only  the 

Anunnaki,    -for  the  great  gods  dwell  in  heaven.      The  creation 

of    mankind    is    next    described,    and    is    boldly    ascribed    to 

Marduk. 

Mankind  he  created.1 

In  the  following  line,  however,  we  come  across  a  trace  again 
of  an  older  tradition,  which  has  been  embodied  in  the  narrative 
in  a  rather  awkward  manner.  Associated  with  Marduk  in  the 
creation  of  mankind  is  a  goddess  Aruru. 

The  goddess  Aruru  created  the  seed  of  men  together  with  him.2 

We  encounter  this  goddess  Aruru  in  the  Gilgamesh  epic," 
where  she  is  represented  as  creating  a  human  being,  —  Eabani; 
and,  curiously  enough,  she  creates  him  in  agreement  with  the 
Biblical  tradition,  out  of  a  lump  of  clay.  It  has  already  been 
pointed  out  that  according  to  one  tradition  Ea  is  the  creator 
of  mankind,4  and  the  conjecture  has  also  been  advanced 
that  at  Nippur,  Bel  was  so  regarded.  In  Aruru  we  have 
evidently  a  figure  to  whom  another  tradition,  that  arose  in  some 
district,  ascribed  the  honor  of  having  created  mankind.  The 
Gilgamesh  story  is  connected  with  the  city  of  Erech,  and  it  is 
probable  that  the  tale  —  at  least  in  part  —  originated  there.  It 
becomes  plausible,  therefore,  to  trace  the  tradition  ascribing  the 
creation  of  man  to  Aruru  to  the  same  place.  A  passage  in  the 
Deluge  story,  which  forms  an  episode  of  the  Gilgamesh  epic,  adds 
some  force  to  this  conjecture.  After  the  dreadful  deluge  has 
come,  Ishtar  breaks  out  in  wild  lament  that  mankind,  her  off- 
spring, has  perished  :  "  What  I  created,  where  is  it  ?  " 5  She 
is  called  'the  mistress  of  the  gods,',;  and  if  Jensen  is  correct  in 
an  ingenious  restoration  of  a  defective  text,7  Aruru  is  given 

1  Zinimoi  n  purposes  to  connect  this  line  with  the  preceding,  but  the  sense  in  that 
i  ase  is  not  at  all  clear. 

-  I.e.,  with  Marduk.  5  Ilaupt,  ib.  p.  139,  1.  116. 

;t  Haupt's  edition,  p.  S,  1.  34.  °  //'.  1.  m. 

-ee  above,  p.  437.  7  Kosmologie,  p.  294,  note  1, 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE  BABYLONIANS.  449 

the  same  epithet  in  a  lexicographical  tablet.  The  Ishtar  occur- 
ring in  the  Gilgamesh  story  is  the  old  Ishtar  of  Erech.  I  ven- 
ture to  suggest,  therefore,  that  Aruru  and  Ishtar  of  Erech  are 
one  and  the  same  personage.  Ishtar  is,  of  course,  as  has  been 
pointed  out,  merely  a  generic  name  l  for  the  '  great  goddess  ' 
worshipped  under  many  forms.  The  more  specific  name  by 
which  Ishtar  of  Erech  was  known  was  Nana,  but  Nana 
again  is  nothing  but  an  epithet,  meaning,  as  the  Babylonians 
themselves  interpreted  it,  the  '  lady  '  par  excellence?  Have  we 
perhaps  in  Aruru  the  real  name  of  the  old  goddess  of  Erech  ? 
At  all  events,  the  occurrence  of  Aruru  in  this  second  '  creation  ' 
story  points  to  her  as  belonging  to  the  district  of  which  Erech 
was  the  center.  In  this  way,  each  one  of  the  three  most  ancient 
sacred  towns  of  Babylonia  would  have  its  '  creator,'  —  Bel  in 
Nippur,  Ea  in  Eridu,  and  Aruru  in  Erech.  The  chief  deity  of 
Erech,  it  will  be  recalled,  was  always  a  goddess,  —  a  circum- 
stance that  supports  the  association  of  Aruru  with  that  place. 
Aruru  being  a  goddess,  it  was  not  so  easy  to  have  Marduk 
take  up  her  role,  as  he  supplanted  Bel.  Again,  Erech  and 
Babylon  were  not  political  rivals  to  the  degree  that  Nippur  and 
Babylon  were.  Accordingly  a  compromise  was  effected,  as  in  the 
case  of  Marduk  and  Ea.  Aruru  is  associated  with  Marduk. 
She  creates  mankind  with  Marduk,  and  it  would  seem  to  be  a 
consequence  of  this  association  that  the  name  of  Marduk's  real 
consort,  Sarpanitum,  is  playfully  but  with  intent  interpreted  by 
the  Babylonian  pedants  as  'seed-producing.'3 

Our  second  version  thus  turns  out  to  be,  like  the  first,  an 
adaptation  of  old  traditions  to  new  conditions.  Babylon  and 
Marduk  are  designedly  introduced.  In  the  original  form  Nip- 
pur, Eridu,  and  Erech  alone  figured,  and  presumably,  therefore,' 
only  the  deities  of  these  three  places.  Among  them  the  work 
of  creation  was  in  some  way  parceled  out.      This  distribution 

1  See  p.  82.  2  See  p.  Si. 

3  Zerbanitum,  as  though  compounded  of  zer  (seed),  and  bant  (create).    See  p.  121, 


450  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

may  itself  have  been  the  result  of  a  combination  of  independent 
traditions.  In  any  early  combination,  however,  we  may  feel 
certain  that  Marduk  was  not  introduced. 

After  this  incidental  mention  of  Aruru,  the  narrative  passes 
back  undisturbed  to  Marduk. 

The  animals  of  the  field,  the  living  creatures  of  the  field  he  created, 

The  Tigris  and   Euphrates    he  formed  in  their  places,  gave    them  good 

names, 
Soil  (?),  grass,  the  marsh,  reed,  and  forest  he  created, 
The  verdure  of  the  field  he  produced, 
The  lands,  the  marsh,  and  thicket, 
The  wild  cow  with  her  young,  the  young  wild  ox, 
The  ewe  with  her  young,  the  sheep  of  the  fold, 
Parks  and  forests, 
The  goat  and  wild  goat  he  brought  forth. 

The  text  at  this  point  becomes  defective,  but  we  can  still 
make  out  that  the  clay  as  building  material  is  created  by  Mar- 
duk, and  that  he  constructs  houses  and  rears  cities.  Corre- 
sponding to  the  opening  lines,  we  may  supply  several  lines  as 

follows: 

Houses  he  erected,  cities  he  built, 
Cities  he  built,  dwellings  he  prepared, 
Nippur  he  built,  E-Kur  he  erected, 
Erech  he  built,  E-Anna  he  erected. 

Here  the  break  in  the  tablet  begins. 

The  new  points  derived  from  this  second  version  are,  id)  the 
details  in  the  creation  of  the  animal  and  plant  world,  {b)  the 
mention  of  Aruru  as  the  mother  of  mankind,  and  (V)  the  in- 
clusion of  human  culture  in  the  story  of  the  'beginnings.' 

Before  leaving  the  subject,  a  brief  comparison  of  these  two 
versions  with  the  opening  chapters  of  Genesis  is  called  for. 
That  the  Hebrew  and  Babylonian  traditions  spring  from  a  com- 
mon source  is  so  evident  as  to  require  no  further  proof.  The 
agreements  are  too  close  to  be  accidental.     At  the  same  time, 


THE    COSMOLOGY   OF    THE   BABYLONIANS.  451 

the  variations  in  detail  point  to  independent  elaboration  of  the 
traditions  on  the  part  of  the  Hebrews  and  Babylonians. 

A  direct  borrowing  from  the  Babylonians  has  not  taken  place, 
and  while  the  Babylonian  records  are  in  all  probabilities  much 
older  than  the  Hebrew,  the  latter  again  contain  elements,  as 
Gunkel  has  shown,  of  a  more  primitive  character  than  the  Baby- 
lonian production.  This  relationship  can  only  be  satisfactorily 
explained  on  the  assumption  that  the  Hebrews  possessed  the 
traditions  upon  which  the  Genesis  narrative  rests  long  before 
the  period  of  the  Babylonian  exile,  when  the  story  appears, 
indeed,  to  have  received  its  final  and  present  shape.  The 
essential  features  of  the  Babylonian  cosmology  formed  part  of 
a  stock  of  traditions  that  Hebrews  and  Babylonians  (and  prob- 
ably others)  received  from  some  common  source  or,  to  put  it 
more  vaguely,  held  in  common  from  a  period,  the  limits  of  which 
can  no  longer  be  determined.  While  the  two  Babylonian  ver- 
sions agree  in  the  main,  embodying  the  same  general  traditions 
regarding  the  creation  of  the  heavenly  bodies  and  containing 
the  same  general  conception  of  an  evolution  in  the  world  from 
confusion  and  caprice  to  order,  and  the  establishment  of  law, 
the  variations  in  regard  to  the  terrestrial  phenomena  must  not 
be  overlooked.  According  to  the  first  version,  mankind  appears 
as  the  last  episode  of  creation;  in  the  second,  mankind  precedes 
vegetation  and  animal  life. 

If  we  now  take  up  the  two  versions  of  creation  found  in 
Genesis,  we  will  see  that  the  same  differences  may  be  observed. 
According  to  the  first,  the  so-called  Elohistic  version,1  mankind 
is  not  created  until  the  last  day  of  creation;  according  to  the 
second,2  the  so-called  Yahwistic  version,  mankind  is  first 
created,  then  a  garden  is  made  and  trees  are  planted.  After 
that,  the  beasts  of  the  field  and  the  birds  of  heaven  are  called 
into  existence. 

1  Gen.  i.  i-ii.  4,  embodied  in  the  "  Priestly  Code." 

2  Gen.  ii.  4  and  extending  in  reality  as  far  as  iv.  25. 


452  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

The  resemblance  of  the  second  Babylonian  version  to  the 
Yahwistic  version  extends  even  to  certain  phrases  which  they 
have  in  common.     The  opening  words  of  the  Yahwist  — 

And  no  plant  of  the  field  was  yet  in  the  earth,  and  no  herb  of  the  field 
had  yet  sprung  up  — 

might  serve  almost  as  a  translation  of  the  second  line  of  the 
Babylonian  counterpart.  The  reference  to  the  Tigris  and 
Euphrates  in  the  second  Babylonian  version  reminds  one  of 
the  four  streams  mentioned  in  the  Yahwistic  version,  two  of 
which  are  likewise  the  Tigris  and  Euphrates.  Again,  Tiamat 
is  mentioned  only  in  the  first  Babylonian  version,  and  T'hom 
similarly  only  in  the  Elohistic  version;  while,  on  the  other  hand, 
the  building  of  cities  is  included  in  the  Yahwistic  version,1  as 
it  forms  part  of  the  second  Babylonian  version.  The  points 
mentioned  suffice  to  show  that  the  Elohistic  version  is  closely 
related  to  the  larger  creation  epic  of  the  Babylonians,  while  the 
Yahwistic  version  --  more  concise,  too,  than  the  Elohistic  — 
agrees  to  an  astonishing  degree  with  the  second  and  more 
concise  Babylonian  record. 

The  conclusion,  therefore,  is  justified  that  the  variations 
between  the  Babylonian  versions  rest  upon  varying  traditions 
that  must  have  arisen  in  different  places.  The  attempt  was 
made  to  ■  combine  these  traditions  by  the  Babylonians,  and 
among  the  Hebrews  we  may  see  the  result  of  a  similar  attempt 
in  the  first  two  or,  more  strictly  speaking,  in  the  first  three 
chapters  of  Genesis.  At  the  same  time,  the  manner  in  which 
both  traditions  have  been  worked  over  by  the  Hebrew  compilers 
of  Genesis  precludes,  as  has  been  pointed  out,  the  theory  of  a 
direct  borrowing  from  cuneiform  documents.  The  climatic 
conditions  involved  in  the  Hebrew  versions  are  those  peculiar 
to  Babylonia.  It  is  in  Babylonia  that  the  thought  would 
naturally  arise  of  making  the  world  begin  with  the  close  of  the 

1  Gen.  iii.  17. 


THE    COSMOLOGY  OF   THE  BABYLONIANS.  453 

storms  and  rains  in  the  spring.  The  Terahites  must  therefore 
have  brought  these  cosmological  traditions  with  them  upon 
migrating  from  the  Euphrates  Valley  to  the  Jordan  district. 

The  traditions  retained  their  hold  through  all  the  vicissitudes 
that  the  people  underwent.  The  intercourse,  political  and  com- 
mercial, between  Palestine  and  Mesopotamia  was  uninterrupted, 
as  we  now  know,  from  at  least  the  fifteenth  century  before  our 
era  down  to  the  taking  of  Jerusalem  by  Nebuchadnezzar,  and  this 
constant  intercourse  was  no  doubt  an  important  factor  in  main- 
taining the  life  of  the  old  traditions  that  bound  the  two  peoples 
together.  The  so-called  Babylonian  exile  brought  Hebrews  and 
Babylonians  once  more  side  by  side.  Under  the  stimulus  of 
this  direct  contact,  the  final  shape  was  given  by  Hebrew  writers 
to  their  cosmological  speculations.  Yahwe  is  assigned  the  role 
of  Bel-Marduk,  the  division  of  the  work  of  creation  into  six 
days  is  definitely  made,1  and  some  further  modifications  intro- 
duced. While,  as  emphasized,  this  final  shape  is  due  to  the 
independent  elaboration  of  the  common  traditions,  and,  what 
is  even  more  to  the  point,  shows  an  independent  interpretation 
of  the  traditions,  it  is  by  no  means  impossible,  but  on  the  con- 
trary quite  probable,  that  the  final  compilers  of  the  Hebrew 
versions  had  before  them  the  cuneiform  tablets,  embodying  the 
literary  form  given  to  the  traditions  by  Babylonian  writers.2 
Such  a  circumstance,  while  not  implying  direct  borrowing, 
would  account  for  the  close  parallels  existing  between  the  two 
Hebrew  and  the  two  Babylonian  versions,  and  would  also 
furnish  a  motive  to  the  Hebrew  writers  for  embodying  two 
versions  in  their  narrative. 

1  See  Gunkel,  Schopfung  unci  Chaos,  p.  13. 

2  On  the  acquaintance  of  Hebrew  writers  of  the  Babylonian  exile  with  cuneiform 
literature  and  on  the  influence  exercised  by  the  latter,  see  D.  H.  Mueller,  Ezcchiel- 
siudien. 


CHAPTER    XXII. 

THE  ZODIACAL  SYSTEM  OF  THE  BABYLONIANS. 

Planets,  Stars,  and  Calendar. 

It  will  be  appropriate  at  this  point,  to  give  a  brief  account  of 
the  astronomical  system  as  developed  by  the  Babylonian  schol- 
ars. The  system  forms  a  part  of  the  Babylonian  cosmology. 
The  '  creation '  narratives  we  have  been  considering  are  based 
upon  the  system,  and  the  omen  literature  is  full  of  allusions  to 
it.  Moreover,  the  understanding  of  some  of  the  purely  religious 
doctrines  of  the  Babylonians  is  dependent  upon  a  proper  con- 
ception of  the  curious  astrological  speculations  which  from 
Babylonia  made  their  way  to  the  Creeks,  and  have  left  their 
traces  in  the  astronomy  of  the  present  time. 

The  stars  were  regarded  by  the  Babylonians  as  pictorial 
designs  on  the  heavens.  A  conception  of  this  kind  is  the  out- 
come of  popular  fancy,  and  has  its  parallel  among  other  nations 
of  antiquity.  We  pass  beyond  the  popular  stage,  however,  when 
we  find  the  stars  described  as  the  '  writing  of  heaven.' l  Such 
a  term  is  the  product  of  the  schools,  and  finds  a  ready  explana- 
tion if  we  remember  that  the  cuneiform  script,  like  other  scripts, 
was  in  its  first  stages  pictorial.  The  Babylonian  scholars  not 
only  knew  this,  but  so  well  did  they  know  it  that  writing  con- 
tinued to  be  regarded  by  them  as  picture  drawing.  The  char- 
acters used  by  them  were  '  likenesses  ' 2  long  after  they  had 
passed  beyond  the  stage  when  they  bore  any  resemblance  to 
the  pictures  they  originally  represented.     The  expression  'writ- 

1  E.g.,  IR.  52,  no.  3,  col.  ii.  1.  2  ;  IIR.  38,  27b. 

2  The  Greek  name  for  the  letters  of  the  alphabet  —  symbolon,  /.<•..  a  "  likeness"  — 
illustrates  the  same  view  of  the  pictorial  origin  of  writing. 


ZODIACAL   SYSTEM   OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  455 

ing  of  heaven'  was,  therefore,  equivalent  to  'picture  of  heaven.' 
The  heavens  themselves  being  regarded  as  a  fixed  vault,  it 
followed  that  the  movements  observed  there  were  caused  by  the 
stars  changing  their  position  ;  and  the  regular  characters  of 
these  movements  within  certain  periods  led  to  speaking  of  the 
movements  of  the  heavenly  bodies  as  their  '  courses.'  It  was 
furthermore  apparent,  even  to  a  superficial  observer,  that  some 
of  the  stars  seemed  fixed  to  their  places,  while  others  moved 
about.  A  distinction  was  thus  drawn  between  wandering  stars 
or  planets  and  fixed  stars.  Groups  of  stars,  the  single  members 
of  which  appeared  in  a  constant  relationship  to  one  another, 
were  distinguished  partly  by  natural  observation  and  partly 
as  a  convenient  means  of  obtaining  a  general  view  of  the  starry 
canopy.  It  was  such  a  group  that  more  particularly  justified 
the  view  which  regarded  the  stars  as  pictorial  designs.  A  line 
drawn  so  as  to  connect  the  stars  of  the  group  turned  out  to  be 
a  design  of  some  sort.  On  omen  tablets,  geometrical  figures 
are  often  found  1  and  interpreted  as  omens,  and  it  is  plausible  to 
suppose  that  the  outlines  presented  by  the  stars  of  a  group  first 
suggested  the  idea  of  attaching  significance  to  combinations  of 
lines  and  curves.  To  connect  these  outlines  with  the  pictures 
that  formed  the  starting-point  for  the  development  of  the  script 
was  again  a  perfectly  natural  procedure,  although  a  scholastic 
one.  The  investigations  of  Delitzsch  have  shown  that  the 
more  than  four  hundred  cuneiform  characters  in  use  can  be 
reduced  to  a  comparatively  small  number  of  '  outlines  '  of  pic- 
tures—  to  about  forty-five.  The  subjects  of  these  '  outlines  ' 
are  all  familiar  ones,  —  sun,  moon,  stars,  mountain,  man,  the 
parts  of  the  human  body,  animals,  plants,  and  utensils.2  Associa- 
tion of  ideas  led  to  giving  to  the  outlines  presented  by  the 
groups  of  stars,  a  similar  interpretation.     The  factor  of  imagina- 

1  For  illustrations,  see  Lenomant,  Magie  und  Wahrsagekunst  der  Chaldaer,  pp. 

520-523. 

2  See  the  summary  on  pp.  198,  199,  of  Delitzsch,  Ursprung  der  Keilscln  iftzcichen. 


456  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

tion,  of  course,  entered  into  play,  but  it  is  also  likely  that  the 
comparison  of  these  heavenly  figures  with  the  pictures  of  the 
script  was  the  controlling  factor  that  led  to  identifying  a  certain 
group  of  stars  with  a  bull,  another  with  a  scorpion,  a  third  with 
a  ram,  a  fourth  with  a  fish,  still  another  with  a  pig,  and  more 
the  like.  That  animals  were  chosen  was  due  to  the  influence 
of  animistic  theories,  and  the  rather  fantastic  shape  of  the 
animals  distinguished  led  to  further  speculations.  So,  eleven 
constellations,  that  is  to  say,  the  entire  zodiac  with  the  excep- 
tion of  the  bull --the  sign  of  Marduk — were  identified  with 
the  eleven  monsters  forming  the  host  of  Tiamat.  The  passage 
in  the  Marduk-Tiamat  myth  '  which  speaks  of  the  capture 
of  these  monsters  through  Marduk  appears  to  have  suggested 
this  identification,  which,  fanciful  though  it  is,  has  a  scholastic 
rather  than  a  popular  aspect.  Jensen  (to  whom,  together 
with  Epping  and  Strassmaier,2  most  of  our  knowledge  of  this 
subject  is  due)  has  shown  3  that  of  the  twelve  constellations  in 
our  modern  zodiac,  the  greater  number  are  identical  with' those 
distinguished  by  the  Babylonians ;  and  while  it  is  probable 
that  two  or  three  of  our  constellations  are  of  occidental  origin, 
the  zodiacal  system  as  a  whole  is  the  product  of  the  Babylo- 
nian schools  of  astronomy.  From  Babylonia  the  system  made 
its  way  to  the  west  and  through  western,  more  particularly 
through  Greek,  influence  back  again  to  India  and  the  dis- 
tant east.  The  number  of  constellations  distinguished  by  the 
Babylonian  astronomers  has  not  yet  been  definitely  ascertained. 
They  certainly  recognized  more  than  twelve.  Further  investi- 
gations may  show  that  they  knew  of  most  of  the  forty-eight 
constellations  enumerated  by  Ptolemy. 

The  general  regularity  of  the  courses  taken  by  the  sun,  moon, 
and  planets  made  it  a  comparatively  simple  matter  to  map  out 

1  See  p.  1 58. 

-  Epping  and  Strassmaier,  Astronomisches  aits  Babylon  (Freiburg.  1889). 

;i  Kosmolo^'w ,  pp.  s;-'»5-     ■Sl'1,  especially  the  summary,  pp.  S2-S4. 


ZODIACAL    SYSTEM  OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  457 

the  limits  within  which  these  bodies  moved.  These  limits  im- 
pressed the  Babylonians,  as  we  have  seen,  with  the  thought 
of  the  eternal  and  unchangeable  laws  under  which  the  planets 
stood.  The  laws  regulating  terrestrial  phenomena,  did  not 
appear  to  be  so  rigid.  There  were  symptoms  of  caprice,  so  that 
the  order  of  the  earth  has  the  appearance  of  being  an  after- 
thought, suggested  by  the  absolute  order  prevailing  in  the 
heavens.  Comets,  meteors,  and  eclipses  alone  seemed  to 
interrupt  this  absolute  order.  As  science  advanced,  it  was 
found  that  even  eclipses  fell  within  the  province  of  law.  The 
course  of  astronomical  science  was  thus  clearly  marked  out 
—  the  determination  of  these  laws. 

The  path  taken  by  the  sun  served  as  a  guide  and  as  a  means 
of  comparison.  Anu  being  both  the  chief  god  of  heaven  and 
the  personification  of  heaven,1  the  sun's  ecliptic  became  known 
as  the  '  way  of  Anu.'  The  division  of  this  ecliptic  into  certain 
sections,  determined  by  the  constellations  within  the  belt  of  the 
ecliptic,  was  the  next  step.  The  course  of  the  moon  and  planets 
was  determined  with  reference  to  the  sun's  ecliptic,  and  grad- 
ually a  zodiacal  system  was  evolved,  the  perfection  of  which  is 
best  exemplified  by  the  fact  that  so  much  of  the  astronomical 
language  of  the  present  time  is  the  same  as  that  used  by  the 
ancient  astronomers  of  the  Euphrates  Valley. 

The  sun  and  moon  being  regarded  as  deities,  under  the  in- 
fluence of  primitive  animistic  ideas,2  the  stars  would  also  come 
to  be  looked  upon  as  divine.  The  ideograph  designating  a 
'  star  '  and  which  is  prefixed  as  a  determinative  to  the  names  of 
stars,  consists  of  the  sign  for  god  repeated  three  times;3  and 
in  the  case  of  those  stars  which  are  identified  with  particular 
deities,  the  simple  determinative  for  god  is  employed.  To 
regard  the  stars  in  general  as  gods  is  a  consequence  of  ani- 

1  See  p.  89. 

2  See  p.  4S. 

3  On  this  ideograph,  see  Jensen,  Kosmologie,  pp.  43,  44. 


458  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

mistic  notions;  but  the  further  steps  in  the  process  which  led 
to  connecting  the  planets  and  certain  other  stars  with  particular 
deities  who  originally  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  stars,  fall 
within  the  province  of  scholastic  theory. 

As  the  jurisdiction  of  gods  originally  worshipped  in  a  limited 
district  increased,  a  difficulty  naturally  arose  among  the  more 
advanced  minds  as  to  the  exact  place  where  the  deity  dwelt. 
This  difficulty  would  be  accentuated  in  the  case  of  a  god  like 
Marduk  becoming    the   chief   god    of    the    whole    Babylonian 
Empire.     His  ardent  worshippers  would  certainly  not  content 
themselves  with  the  notion  that  a  single  edifice,  even  though  it 
be  his  great  temple  at  Babylon,  could  contain  him.    Again,  the 
development  of  a  pantheon,  systematized,  and  in    which   the 
various  gods  worshipped  in  Babylonia   came  to  occupy  fixed 
relationships  to  one  another,  would  lead  to  the  view  of  putting 
all  the  gods  in  one  place.     The  sun  and  moon  being  in  the 
heavens,  the    most    natural  place  to  assign  to  the  gods  as  a 
dwelling-place  was  in  the  region  where  Shamash  and  Sin  (as 
every  one  could  see  for  himself)  had  their  seats.      The  doctrine 
thus  arose  that  the  great  gods  dwell  in  the  '  heaven  of  Ami.'     A 
doctrine  of  this  kind  would  be  intelligible  to  the  general  popu- 
lace, but  it  is  doubtful  whether  a  belief  which  involved    the 
establishment  of  a  direct  connection  between  the  most  promi- 
nent stars  —  the  planets  with  the  chief   gods — ever  enjoyed 
popular  favor  in  Babylonia.     The  association  is  marked  by  an 
artificiality  and  a  certain  arbitrariness  that  stamps  it  not  only 
as  the  product  of   theological  schools,  but  as  a  thought  that 
would  remain  confined  to  a  limited  circle  of  the  population. 
Jensen  suggests  1  that  the  planets  may  at  one  time  have  been 
merely  regarded  as  standing  under  the  influence  of  the  great 
gods,  and  that  a  planet  from  being  regarded  as  the  star  con- 
trolled by  Marduk,  became  identified  with  Marduk.     It  seems 
more  plausible  that  the  association  should  have  been  direct. 

i  Kosmologie,  p.  [34. 


ZODIACAL   SYSTEM  OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  459 

Even  though  the  Babylonians  may  not  have  had  any  knowledge 
of  the  relative  mass  of  the  planets,  in  some  way  Jupiter  must 
have  appeared  to  them  as  the  largest  of  the  planets,  and  for 
this  reason  was  identified  with  the  head  of  the  Babylonian 
pantheon,  Marduk.  In  the  creation  epic,  as  we  have  seen, 
Jupiter-Marduk,  under  the  name  of  Nibir,  is  represented  as 
exercising  a  control  over  all  the  stars.  Mythological  associa- 
tions appear  to  have  played  a  part  in  identifying  the  planet 
Venus  with  the  goddess  Ishtar.  A  widely  spread  nature  myth,1 
symbolizing  the  change  of  seasons,  represents  Ishtar,  the  per- 
sonification of  fertility,  the  great  mother  of  all  that  manifests 
life,  as  proceeding  to  the  region  of  darkness  and  remaining 
there  for  some  time.  The  disappearance  of  the  planet  Venus 
at  certain  seasons,  as  morning  star  to  reappear  as  evening  star, 
suggested  the  identification  of  this  planet  with  Ishtar.  From 
these  two  examples  we  may  conclude  that  the  process  which 
resulted  in  the  identification  of  Saturn  with  Ninib,  Mars  with 
Nergal,  Mercury  with  Nabu  rested  similarly  on  an  association 
of  ideas,  derived  from  certain  conceptions  held  of  the  gods 
involved.  In  regard  to  Ninib  and  Nergal  it  is  of  some  impor- 
tance to  bear  in  mind  that,  like  Marduk,  they  are  at  their  origin 
solar  deities,  Ninib  representing  in  the  perfected  theological 
system  the  morning  sun,  Marduk  the  sun  of  the  early  spring, 
and  Nergal  the  mid-day  sun  and  summer  solstice.2  The  posi- 
tion of  the  planets  Saturn  and  Mars,  accordingly,  with  reference 
to  the  sun  at  certain  periods  of  the  year,  may  well  have  been  a 
factor  in  the  association  of  ideas  involved. 

The  position  of  the  sun,  as  the  general  overseer  of  the 
planets,  led  to  the  application  of  an  interesting  metaphor  to 
express  the  relationship  between  the  sun  and  the  planets.  Just 
as  the   human  chiefs  or  kings  were   called  'shepherds,'  —  a 

1  See  the  following  chapter  on  "  The  Gilgamesh  Epic,"  and  chapter  xxv,  "  The 
Views  of  the  Babylonians  and  Assyrians  of  the  Life  after  Death." 

2  Jensen,  ib.  p.  140.     See  above,  p.  67. 


460  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

metaphor  suggested,  no  doubt,  by  agricultural  life,  —  so  the 
planets  were  commonly  known  as  '  sheep  M  or,  as  Jensen  sug- 
gests,2 '  wandering  sheep,'  and  it  is  rather  curious  that  Mars- 
Nergal  should  have  been  designated  as  the  '  sheep ' 3  par 
excellence.  The  '  service '  in  which  the  planets  stood  to  the  sun 
is  exemplified  by  another  term  applied  to  them,  which  designates 
them  as  the  mediators  carrying  out  the  orders  of  their  superior. 

Lastly,  it  may  be  noted  that  each  planet  receives  a  variety  of 
names  and  epithets  in  the  astronomical  texts, —  a  circumstance 
that  points  to  the  composite  character  of  the  developed  plan- 
etary system  of  the  Babylonians.  Some  of  these  names  are 
of  so  distinctive  a  character  as  to  justify  the  conclusion  that 
they  arose  in  the  different  centers  where  astronomical  schools 
existed. 

The  process  involved  in  the  development  of  the  system  is 
thus  complicated  by  factors  introducing  views  originally  confined 
to  certain  districts,  and  it  becomes  doubtful  whether  we  will 
ever  be  able  to  trace  all  the  steps  involved  in  the  process. 

Corresponding  to  the  unique  position  occupied  by  the  supe- 
rior triad  Ami,  Bel,  and  Ea  in  the  theological  system,  a  special 
place  was  assigned  to  them  in  the  astronomical  system.  Anu 
is  the  pole  star  of  the  ecliptic,  Bel  the  pole  star  of  the  equator, 
while  Ea  in  the  southern  heavens  was  identified,  according  to 
Jensen,4  with  a  star  in  the  constellation  Argo.  Anu,  Bel,  and 
Ea  represented  the  three  most  prominent  fixed  stars,  but  by 
the  side  of  these  a  large  number  of  other  stars  were  distinguished 
and  many  of  them  identified  with  some  deity.  For  some  of  these 
stars  the  modern  equivalents  have  been  ascertained  through 
recent  researches;5  others  still  remain  to  be  determined. 

The  astronomical  science  of  the  Babylonians  thus  resolves 
itself  into  these  natural  divisions  : 

i  bibbu.  -  lb.  p.  mi  i. 

3  Perhaps  because  of  the  intensity  of  Mars'  light. 

4  lb.  p.  27.  •"•  Sec  especially  Jensen's  Kosmologie,  pp.  46-57  and  144-160. 


ZODIACAL   SYSTEM  OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  461 

(i)  the  constellations,  especially  those  of  the  zodiac, 

(2)  the  five  great  planets, 

(3)  the  fixed  stars,  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea, 

(4)  miscellaneous  stars,  and 

(5)  the  sun  and  moon. 

The  rivalry  between  the  two  great  luminaries  ends  in  a 
superior  rank  being  accorded  to  the  sun.  Natural  and  indeed 
inevitable  as  this  conclusion  was,  the  scientific  theory  in  the 
Euphrates  Valley  was  presumably  influenced  to  some  extent 
by  the  circumstance  that  the  head  of  the  pantheon  was  a  solar 
deity.  We  have  seen  that  the  tradition  of  this  original  charac- 
ter of  Marduk  survived  in  the  popular  mind. 

Of  the  sun  but  little  need  be  said  here.  As  represented  in 
the  creation  story,  he  was  freer  in  his  movements  than  any  of 
the  planets.  He  passed  across  the  heavens  daily  as  an  over- 
seer to  see  that  everything  was  maintained  in  good  order.  As 
in  Greek  mythology,  the  sun  was  represented  as  riding  in  a 
chariot  drawn  by  horses.1  Scientific  speculation  advanced  but 
little  upon  these  popular  fancies.  The  course  that  the  sun 
took  on  the  ecliptic  was  determined,  and  the  ecliptic  itself 
served  as  the  guide  for  determining  the  position  and  move- 
ments of  the  stars.  Under  the  growing  influence  of  the  Mar- 
duk cult  and  of  such  deities  as  Ninib,  Nergal,  and  Nabu, 
associated  with  Marduk  mythologically  or  politically,  the  old 
moon  worship  lost  much  of  its  prestige;  but  in  astronomical 
science,  the  former  independent  rank  of  the  moon  is  still  in 
large  measure  preserved.  In  the  enumeration  of  the  planets 
the  moon  is  mentioned  first.2  The  moon  is  not  a  '  sheep ' 
belonging  to  the  flock  of  Shamash.  The  importance  of  the 
moon  in  the  regulation  of  the  calendar  saved  her  from  this 
fate.     The  beginning  of  the  calendrical  system,  indeed,  may 

1  Jensen,  ib.  pp.  10S,  109. 

2  The  constant  order  is  moon,  sun,  Marduk,  Ishtar,  Ninib,  Nergal,  Nabu.     E.g. 
IIR.  48,  4S-54a-b. 


462  BA  B  YL  ONI  AN- ASS  YRIAN  RELIGION. 

well  have  been  of  popular  origin.  Ihering1  is  of  the  opinion 
that  agricultural  occupations  made  the  marking  off  of  time  a 
popular  necessity,  and  this  view  is  borne  out  by  the  early 
epithets  of  the  months  among  the  Babylonians,2  which,  as  among 
the  Hebrews,  are  connected  with  agriculture  and  the  life  of 
the  agriculturist.  The  later  names  also  bear  traces  of  the 
same  train  of  thoughts.  Leaving  aside  details  into  which  it  is 
needless  to  enter  here,  the  part  of  the  calendar  which  touches 
upon  the  religion  of  the  Babylonians  is  the  sacred  character 
given  to  the  months  by  making  each  one  devoted  to  some  god 
or  gods.  In  this  association  there  may  be  observed  the  same 
curious  mixture  of  several  factors  that  controlled  the  identifica- 
tion of  the  planets  with  the  gods.  The  theory  underlying  the 
pantheon  and  certain  mythological  conceptions  are  two  of  the 
factors  that  can  be  clearly  seen  at  work.  The  triad  Anu,  Bel. 
and  Ea  are  accorded  the  first  rank.3 

The  first  month,  Nisan,  is  sacred  to  Anu  and  Bel. 

The  second,  Iyar,  is  sacred  to  Ea  as  the  "  lord  of  humanity." 

Then  follows  Sin  to  whom,  as  the  first-born  of  Bel,4  the  third 
month,  Siwan,  is  devoted. 

The  four  succeeding  months  are  parceled  out  among  deities 
closely  connected  with  one  another,  —  Ninib,  Nin-gishzida,  Ish- 
tar,  and  Shamash.  Of  these,  Ninib  and  Nin-gishzida  are  solar 
deities.  Ninib,  as  the  morning  sun,  symbolizes  the  approach 
of  the  summer  season,  while  Nin-gishzida,  another  solar  deity,5 
represents  an  advance  in  this  season.  To  them,  therefore,  the 
fourth  and  fifth  months,  Tammuz  (or  1  )u'zu)  and  Ab  respectively, 
aresacred.  Ishtar  is  the  goddess  of  fertility,  and  the  sixth  month, 
which  represents  the  culmination  of  the  summer  season,  is 
accordingly  devoted  to  her.     As  the  last  of  the  group  comes 

i  Vorgeschichte  der  Indo-Europaer,  pp.  151  set/. 

2  On  the  older  and  later  names  of  the  Babylonians,  see  Meissner,  Zeitschrift  fur 
die  Kunde  des  Morgenlandes,  v.  1S0,  1S1,  and  on 'the  general  subject  of  the  Baby- 
Ionian  months,  Muss-Arnolt's  valuable  articles  in  the  Journal  of  Biblical  Literature, 
xi.  72-94  and  160-176. 

:t  1VR.-  pi.  2,1,-  4  En-lil.  •'■  See  above,  p.  99. 


ZODIACAL    SYSTEM   OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  463 

Shamash  himself,  to  whom  the  seventh  month,  Tishri  (or  Tash- 
ritum),  is  sacred.  Marduk  and  Nergal  come  next,  the  eighth 
month,  Marcheshwan,1  being  sacred  to  the  former,  the  ninth 
Kislev  to  the  great  warrior  Nergal.  The  factors  here  involved 
are  not  clear,  nor  do  we  know  why  the  tenth  month  is  sacred  to 
Papsukal  —  perhaps  here  used  as  an  epithet  of  Nabu  —  to  Anu, 
and  to  Ishtar.  The  eleventh  month,  the  height  of  the  rainy 
season  and  known  as  the  "month  of  the  course  of  rainstorms," 
is  appropriately  made  sacred  to  Ramman,  '  the  god  of  storms.' 
The  last  month,  Adar,  falling  within  the  rainy  season  is  presided 
over  by  the  seven  evil  spirits.  Lastly,  an  interesting  trace  of 
Assyrian  influence  is  to  be  seen  in  devoting  to  Ashur,  "  the 
father  of  the  gods,"  the  intercalated  month,  the  second  Adar. 
This  introduction  of  Ashur  points  to  the  late  addition  of  this 
intercalated  month,  and  makes  it  probable  also  that  the  inter- 
calation is  the  work  of  astronomers  standing  under  Assyrian 
authority.  A  second  intercalated  month  is  Elul  the  second. 
This  month  is  sacred  to  Anu  and  Bel,  just  like  Nisan,  the  first 
month.  The  list,  therefore,  begins  anew  with  the  intercalated 
month.  Such  a  procedure  is  natural,  and  one  is  inclined  to 
conclude  that  the  intercalated  Elul  is  of  Babylonian  origin  and 
older  than  the  intercalated  Adar. 

It  does  not  appear  that  the  female  consorts  of  the  gods  shared 
in  the  honors  thus  bestowed  upon  the  male  deities.  Variations 
from  the  list  as  given  also  occur.  So  Ashurbanabal  calls  the 
seventh  month,  Elul,  the  month  of  'the  king  of  gods  Ashur,'2 
while  Sargon3  assigns  the  fourth  month  to  the  '  servant  of  Gibil,' 
the  fire-god,  by  which  Nin-gishzida  is  meant,  and  the  third 
month  he  calls  the  month  of  "  the  god  of  brick  structures."4 

In  fact,  the  assigning  of  the  months  to  the  gods  appears  to 
partake  more  or  less  of  an  arbitrary  character.  Absolute  uni- 
formity probably  did  not  prevail  throughout  Babylonia  until  a 

1  Lit., '  Arakh-shamnu,'  i.e.,  month  eight.       3  Cylinder,  Inscription  1.  6i. 

2  Rassam,  Cylinder,  col.  iii.  1.  32.  *  lb.  1. 5S,  —  a  rather  curious  title  of  Sin. 


464  BAB  YLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

comparatively  late  period.  Nor  does  it  appear  that  any  popular 
significance  was  attached  to  the  sacred  character  thus  given  to 
the  months.  It  was  the  work  of  the  schools,  as  are  most  of 
the  features  involved  in  the  elaboration  of  the  calendar. 

In  somewhat  closer  touch  with  popular  notions  and  popular 
observances  were  the  names  of  the  months.  Confining  ourselves 
to  the  later  names,  —  the  forms  in  which  they  were  transmitted 
during  the  period  of  the  Babylonian  exile  to  the  Jews,1  —  we  find 
that  the  first  month  which,  as  we  shall  see,  was  marked  by 
sacred  observances  in  the  temples  of  Marduk  and  Nabu  at 
Babylon  and  Borsippa  was  designated  ideographically  as  '  the 
month  of  the  sanctuary,' the  third  as  the  period  of  'brick-making,' 
the  fifth  as  the  'fiery'  month,  the  sixth  as  the  month  of  the 
'  mission  of  Ishtar'  —  a  reference  to  the  goddess'  descent  into 
the  region  of  darkness.  Designations  like  '  taking  (i.e.,  scat- 
tering) seed  '  for  the  fourth  month,  '  copious  fertility  '  for  the 
ninth  month,  'grain-cutting'  period  for  the  twelfth,  and  'opening 
of  dams'2  for  the  eighth  contain  distinct  references  to  agricul- 
ture. The  name  'destructive  rain  '  for  the  eleventh  month  is 
suggested  by  climatic  conditions.  Still  obscure  is  the  designa- 
tion of  the  seventh  rrnanth  as  the  month  of  the  'resplendent 
mound,'3  and  so  also  is  the  designation  of  the  second  month.4 

The  calendar  is  thus  shown  to  be  the  product  of  the  same 
general  order  of  religious  ideas  that  we  have  detected  in  the 
zodiacal  and  planetary  systems.     Its  growth   must  have  been 

1  The  Talmud  preserves  the  tradition  of  the  Babylonian  origin  of  the  Hebrew 
calendar  (Jerusalem  Talmud Rosk-Hashsliand,  i.  i). 

-  For  the  irrigation  of  the  fields. 

;;  In  some  way  indicative  of  its  sacred  character.  It  is  to  be  noted  that  this  month 
—  Tishri — is  the  festival  month  among  the  Hebrews  and  originally  also  among  the 
Arabs.  The  '  mound'  is  a  reference  to  the  temples  which  were  erected  on  natural  or 
artificial  eminences. 

4  The  latter  is  described  by  a  series  of  ideographs,  "herd"  and  "  to  prosper."  Is 
there  perhaps  a  reference  to  cows  giving  birth  to  calves  in  this  month,  the  early 
spring?  For  another,  but  improbable,  explanation,  see  Babylonian  and  Oriental 
Record,  iv.  yj. 


ZODIACAL   SYSTEM   OF   THE   BABYLONIANS.  465 

gradual,  for  its  composite  character  is  one  of  its  most  striking 
features.  The  task  was  no  easy  one  to  bring  the  lunar  year 
into  proper  conjunction  with  the  solar  year,  and  there  are 
grounds  for  believing  that  prior  to  the  division  of  the  year  into 
twelve  parts,  there  was  a  year  of  ten  months  corresponding  to 
a  simpler,  perhaps  a  decimal,  system,  which  appears  to  have 
preceded  the  elaborate  sexagesimal  system.1 

However  this  may  be,  the  point  of  importance  for  our  pur- 
poses is  to  detect  the  extension  of  religious  ideas  into  the 
domain  of  science,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  to  note  the  reaction 
of  scientific  theories  on  the  development  of  religious  thought. 
The  cosmology  of  the  Babylonians  results  from  the  continued 
play  of  these  two  factors.  Hence  the  strange  mixture  of  popu- 
lar notions  and  fancies  with  comparatively  advanced  theological 
speculations  and  still  more  advanced  scientific  theories  that  is 
found  in  the  cosmological  system.  Even  mysticism  is  given  a 
scientific  aspect  in  Babylonia.  The  identification  of  the  gods 
with  the  stars  arises,  as  we  have  seen,  from  a  scientific  impulse, 
and  it  is  a  scientific  spirit  again  that  leads  to  the  introduction 
of  the  gods  into  the  mathematics  of  the  day.2  A  number  is 
assigned  to  each  of  the  chief  gods.  And,  though  such  a  pro- 
cedure has  its  natural  outcome  in  Cabbalistic  tendencies,  we 
can  still  discern  in  the  ideas  that  lead  to  this  association  of 
numbers  with  gods,  influences  at  work  that  emanated  from  the 
astronomical  schools.  Thus  the  moon-god  Sin  is  identified 
with  the  number  thirty,  suggested  by  the  days  of  the  ordinary 
month.  Ishtar,  the  daughter  of  Sin,  is  number  fifteen,  the  half 
of  thirty.  The  unit  in  the  sexagesimal  —  the  number  sixty — 
is  assigned  to  Anu,  the  chief  of  the  triad,  while  the  other  two 
members,  Bel  and  Ea,  follow  as  fifty  and  forty  respectively. 
The  dependence  of  this  species  of  identification  upon  the  ca- 

1  Lehmann  {Actcs  du  Se'"e  Congres  Internationel  des  Orientalists,  Leiden,  1S91, 
i.  169,  note)  admits  the  probability  of  an  earlier  and  more  natural  system. 

2  Lotz,  Quaestiones  dc  Historia  Sabbati,  pp.  27-29. 


466  BA  B  YL  ONI  A  N-A  SS  i  'KIA  N  REL IGION. 

lendrical  system  is  made  manifest  by  the  inferior  rank  given 
to  the  sun,  which  receives  the  number  twenty,  the  decimal 
next  to  that  assigned  to  Sin,  while  Ramman,  the  third 
member  of  the  second  triad,1  is  identified  with  ten.2 
Absolute  consistency  in  this  process  is,  of  course,  as  little 
to  be  expected  as  in  other  semi-mystical  aspects  of  the 
science  of  the  Babylonians;  nor  is  it  necessary  for  our  purposes 
to  enter  upon  the  further  consequences  resulting  from  this  com- 
bination of  gods  with  numbers.  The  association  of  ideas 
involved  in  the  combination  furnishes  another  and  rather 
striking  illustration  of  the  close  contact  between  science  and 
religion  in  the  remarkable  culture  of  the  Euphrates  Valley. 

There  was  no  conflict  between  science  and  religion  in  ancient 
Babylonia.  Each  reacted  on  the  other,  but  the  two  factors 
were  at  all  times  closely  united  in  perfect  harmony,  —  a 
harmony  so  perfect,  indeed,  as  to  be  impressive  despite  its 
naivete. 

1  Sin,  Shamash,  and  Ramman.     See  pp.  10S,  163. 

2  See  for  other  combinations  Lotz  ib.,  and  compare,  e.g.,  VR.  36,  where  the  num- 
ber ten  is  associated  with  a  large  number  of  gods, —  Anu,  Anatum,  Bel,  Ishtar,  etc. 


CHAPTER    XXIII. 
THE   GILGAMESH   EPIC. 

We  have  seen  l  that  the  religion  of  Babylonia  permeates  all 
branches  of  literature,  so  that  it  is  not  always  possible  to  draw 
a  sharp  dividing  line  between  sacred  and  secular  productions. 

To  account  for  this,  it  is  but  necessary  to  bear  in  mind  what 
the  previous  chapters  have  aimed  to  make  clear,  that  religion 
furnished  the  stimulus  for  the  unfolding  of  intellectual  life,  and 
that  the  literary  and  scientific  productions  represent  the  work 
of  men  primarily  interested  in  religion.  The  significance  at- 
tached as  omens  to  heavenly  phenomena  led  by  degrees  to 
the  elaborate  astronomical  system  outlined  in  the  previous 
chapter.  But  the  astronomers  of  Babylonia  were  priests,  and 
indeed  the  same  priests  who  compiled  the  hymns  and  incanta- 
tions. What  is  true  of  astronomy  applies  to  medicine,  so  far 
as  medicine  had  an  existence  independent  of  incantations,  and 
also  to  law.  The  physician  was  a  priest,  as  was  the  judge  and 
likewise  the  scribe. 

It  is  natural,  therefore,  to  find  that  what  may  be  called  the 
great  national  epic  of  the  Babylonians  was  of  a  religious  char- 
acter. The  interpretation  given  to  the  traditions  of  the  past 
was  religious.  The  distant  past  blended  with  the  phenomena  of 
nature  in  such  a  way  as  to  form  a  strange  combination  of  poetry 
and  realism.  But  thanks  to  this  combination,  which  is  essen- 
tially a  process  of  the  popular  mind,  the  production  that  we  are 
about  to  consider  brings  us  much  closer  to  the  popular  phases 
of  the  Babylonian  religion  than  does  the  cosmology  or  the 
zodiacal  system. 

After  all,  a  nation  is  much  more  interested  in  its  heroes  and 

1  See  above,  pp.  245-247. 


46S  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

in  its  own  beginnings,  than  in  the  beginnings  of  things  in  gen- 
eral. Some  speculation  regarding  the  origin  of  the  universe  is 
perhaps  inevitable  the  moment  that  the  spirit  of  inquiry  arises, 
but  these  speculations  are  soon  entrusted  into  the  hands  of  a 
minority, -- the  thinkers,  the  priests,  the  astronomers, — who 
elaborate  a  system  that  gradually  separates  itself  from  popular 
thought  and  exercises  little  influence  upon  the  development  of 
religious  ideas  among  the  masses. 

The  Book  of  Genesis  passes  rapidly  over  the  creation  of  stars, 
plants,  and  animals,  as  though  anxious  to  reach  the  history  of 
man,  and  when  it  comes  to  the  traditions  regarding  the  ancestors 
of  the  Hebrews,  the  details  are  dwelt  upon  at  length  and  pic- 
tured with  a  loving  hand.  Similarly  among  the  Babylonians, 
there  is  a  freshness  about  the  story  of  the  adventures  of  a  great 
hero  of  the  past  that  presents  a  contrast  to  the  rather  abstruse 
speculations  embodied  in  the  creation  epic.  In  this  story,  in 
which  a  variety  of  ancient  traditions  have  been  combined,  there 
is  comparatively  little  trace  of  the  scholastic  spirit,  and  although, 
as  we  shall  see,  the  story  has  been  given  its  final  shape  under 
the  same  influences  that  determined  the  other  branches  of  reli- 
gious literature,  the  form  has  not  obscured  the  popular  character 
of  the  material  out  of  which  the  story  has  been  constructed. 

The  name  of  the  hero  of  the  story  was  for  a  long  time  a 
puzzle  to  scholars.  Written  invariably  in  ideographic  fashion, 
the  provisional  reading  Izdubar1  was  the  only  safe  recourse  until 
a  few  years  ago,  when  Pinches  discovered  in  a  lexicographical 
tablet  the  equation 

Izdubar  =  Gilgamesh.2 

The  equation  proved  that  the  Babylonians  and  Assyrians 
identified  the  hero  with   a   legendary  king,   Gilgamos,   who  is 

i  Or  Gishdubar  or  Gishtubar. 

-  Babylonian  and  Oriental  Record,  iv.  264.  For  previous  readings  of  the 
name,  see  Jeremias'  article  on  'Izdubar'  in  Roscher's  Ausfiihrliches  Lexicon  dcr 
Griechischen  "/i<l  R'dmischen  Mythologie,  ii.  col.  773i  "74- 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  469 

mentioned  by  Aelian.1  To  be  sure,  what  Aelian  tells  of  this 
hero  is  not  found  in  the  Izdubar  epic,  and  appears  to  have 
originally  been  recounted  of  another  legendary  personage, 
Etana.2  There  is  therefore  a  reasonable  doubt  whether  the 
identification  made  by  Babylonian  scholars  represents  an  old 
tradition  or  is  merely  a  late  conjecture  arising  at  a  time  when 
the  tradition^  of  Izdubar  were  confused  with  those  of  Etana. 
Still,  since  Etana  appears  to  be  a  phonetic  reading  and  can  be 
explained  etymologically  in  a  satisfactory  manner,  the  pre- 
sumption is  in  favor  of  connecting  Gilgamesh  with  the  hero 
of  the  great  epic.  For  the  present,  therefore,  we  may  accept 
the  identification  and  assume  that  in  Aelian,  as  well  as  in  the 
sources  whence  he  drew  his  information,  Izdubar-Gilgamesh 
has  been  confused  with  Etana.3 

The  ideographic  form  of  the  name  is  preceded  invariably 
by  the  determinative  for  deity,  but  the  three  elements  compos- 
ing the  name,  iz,  du,  and  bar,  are  exceedingly  obscure.  The 
first  element  is  a  very  common  determinative,  preceding  objects 
made  of  wood  or  any  hard  substance.  The  word  for  weapon 
is  always  written  with  this  determinative  ;  and  since  Izdubar  is 
essentially  a  warrior,  one  should  expect  dubar  to  represent  some 
kind  of  a  weapon  that  he  carries.  On  seal  cylinders  Gilgamesh 
appears  armed  with  a  large  lance.4  However  this  may  be, 
Jeremias'  proposition  to  render  the  name  as  "divine  judge  of 
earthly  affairs"5  is  untenable,  and  the  same  may  be  said  of 
other  conjectures. 

1  Historic.  Animalum,  xii.  21.  2  See  p.  524. 

:i  In  the  Oriental  legends  of  Alexander  the  Great,  this  confusion  is  further  illus- 
trated. To  Alexander  are  attached  stories  belonging  to  both  Izdubar  and  Etana. 
See  Meissner's  Alexander  and  Gilgamos,  pp.  13-17  (Leipzig,  1S94). 

4  See,  e.g.,  Perrot  and  Chipiez,  History  of  Art  in  Babylonia  and  Assyria,  i.  84. 

5  Article  '  Izdubar,'  col.  776 ;  see  Delitzsch,  Handw'drterbuch,  p.  678.  Hommel 
(e.g.,  Altisraelitiscke  Ueberlteferung,  p.  39)  regards  Gilgamesh  as  a  contraction 
from  Gibil  (the  fire-god)  and  Gam  (or  Gab),  together  with  isk,  an  '  Elamitic'  ending. 
If  the  name  is  Elamitic,  one  should  hardly  expect  a  Babylonian  deity  entering  as  one 
of  the  elements. 


470  BAB  YL  O  XI AN- ASS  YRIAN  BE  L/C  10.  \ r. 

The  fact  that  the  name  is  written  with  the  determinative  for 
deity  must  not  lead  us  to  a  purely  mythical  interpretation  of  the 
epic.  There  was  a  strong  tendency  in  Babylonia  to  regard  the 
early  kings  as  gods.  Dungi  and  Gudea,  who  are  far  from  being 
the  earliest  rulers  in  the  Euphrates  Valley,  appear  in  tablets 
with  the  determinative  for  deity  attached  to  their  names,1  and 
it  would  be  natural,  therefore,  that  a  hero  belonging  to  a  remote 
period  should  likewise  be  deified.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that 
there  is  a  historical  background  to  the  Gilgamesh  epic,  and 
there  is  equally  no  reason  to  question  the  existence  of  an 
ancient  king  or  hero  who  bore  the  name  Gilgamesh.  The 
deification  of  the  hero  superinduced  the  introduction  of  mythi- 
cal elements.  It  was  an  easy  process  also,  that  led  to  tales 
which  arose  as  popular  symbols  of  occurrences  in  nature,  being 
likewise  brought  into  connection  with  a  hero,  who  was  at  the 
same  time  a  god. 

The  Gilgamesh  epic  thus  takes  shape  as  a  compound  of  faint 
historical  tradition  and  of  nature  myths.  The  deified  hero 
becomes  more  particularly  a  solar  deity.  The  popularity  of 
the  hero-god  is  attested  by  the  introduction  of  his  name  in 
incantations,2  and  by  special  hymns  being  composed  in  his 
honor.  One  of  these  hymns,3  of  a  penitential  character,  is 
interesting  as  illustrating  the  survival  of  the  recollection  of 
his  human  origin.  Gilgamesh  is  addressed  by  a  penitent,  who 
seeks  healing  from  disease  : 

(  I  ( rilgamesh,  great  king,  judge  of  the  Anunnaki, 

Prince,  great  oracle4  of  mankind, 

Overseer  of  all  regions,  ruler  of  the  world,  lord  of  what  is  on  earth, 

Thou  dost  judge  and,  like  a  god,  thou  givest  decisions,5 

1  See  above,  p.  167. 

2  See  above,  p.  2,S^. 

8  Haupt's  Das  Babylonische  \rimrodcpos,  p.  93. 

4  Lit.,'  he  who  is  applied  to  for  giving  a  decision.' 

5  Ta-par-ra-as. 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  471 

Thou  art  established  on  the  earth,  thou  fulfillest  judgment, 

Thy  judgment  is  unchangeable,  thy  [command  is  not  revoked], 

Thou  dost  inquire,  thou  commandest,  thou  judgest,  thou  seest,  and  thou 

directest. 
Shamash  has  entrusted  into  thy  hand  sceptre  and  decision. 

It  will  be  observed  that  Gilgamesh  is  appealed  to  as  a 'king' 
and  'prince.'  His  dominion  is  the  earth,  and  the  emphasis 
placed  upon  this  circumstance  is  significant.  In  accord  with 
this  peculiar  province  of  the  god,  the  hymn  continues: 

Kings,  chiefs,  and  princes  bow  before  thee, 

Thou  seest  their  laws,  thou  presidest  over  their  decisions. 

At  the  same  time,  his  dependence  upon  Shamash  is  empha- 
sized. As  a  minor  solar  deity,  he  receives  his  powers  from  the 
great  judge  Shamash.  This  double  character  of  Gilgamesh 
furnishes  the  key  to  the  interpretation  of  the  epic  in  which  he 
is  the  central  figure. 

The  poem  in  its  final  shape  comprised  twelve  tablets  of 
about  three  thousand  lines..  Unfortunately  only  about  half  of 
the  epic  has  been  found  up  to  the  present  time.  The  numer- 
ous fragments  represent  at  least  four  distinct  copies,  all  belong- 
ing to  the  library  of  Ashurbanabal.  To  Professor  Paul  Haupt 
we  are  indebted  for  a  practically  complete  publication  of  the  frag- 
ments of  the  epic  j1  and  it  is  likewise  owing,  chiefly,  to  Professor 
Haupt  that  the  sequence  in  the  incidents  of  the  epic  as  well  as 
the  general  interpretation  of  the  composition  has  been  estab- 
lished.2 

1  Das  Babylonischc  Nimrodepos  (Leipzig,  1SS4-91).  This  edition  includes  all 
but  the  twelfth  tablet,  which  was  published  by  Haupt  in  the  Beit  rags  zur  Assyrio- 
logie,  i.  4S-79.  For  other  publications  of  Haupt  on  the  Gilgamesh  epic,  see  the 
Bibliography,  §  6.  The  identification  with  the  Biblical  Nimrod  is  now  definitely 
abandoned  by  scholars,  though  the  picture  drawn  of  Nimrod  is  influenced  by  the 
traditions  regarding  Gilgamesh.     See  p.  515. 

2  The  test  general  work  on  the  epic  (based  on  Haupt's  edition)  is  A.  Jeremias' 
Izdubar-Nhnrod  (Leipzig,  1S91),  a  reprint  with  additions,  of  his  article  on  '  Izdubar  ' 
in  Roscher's  AusfUhrliches  Lexicon  dcr  Griechischen  und  Rbrnischen  Mytkologie,  ii. 


472  BA  B  YL  ONI  A  N-A  SS  YRIA  N  REL IGION. 

The  center  of  action  in  the  first  tablets  of  the  series  and  in 
the  oldest  portions  of  the  epic  is  the  ancient  city  Uruk,  or  Erech, 
m  southern  Babylonia,  invariably  spoken  of  as  Uruk  suptiri, 
that  is,  the  '  walled  '  or  fortified  Uruk.  A  special  significance 
attaches  to  this  epithet.  It  was  the  characteristic  of  every 
ancient  town,  for  reasons  which  Ihering  has  brilliantly  set  forth,1 
to  be  walled.'2  The  designation  of  Uruk  as  '  walled,'  therefore, 
stamps  it  as  a  city,  but  that  the  term  was  added,  also  points 
to  the  great  antiquity  of  the  place, — to  a  period  when  towns 
as  distinguished  from  mere  agricultural  villages  were  sufficiently 
rare  to  warrant  some  special  nomenclature.  From  other 
sources  the  great  age  of  Uruk  is  confirmed,  and  Hilprecht" 
is  of  the  opinion  that  it  was  the  capitol  of  a  kingdom  contempo- 
raneous with  the  earliest  period  of  Babylonian  history.  A 
lexicographical  tablet 4  informs  us  that  Uruk  was  specially  well 
fortified.  It  was  known  as  the  place  of  seven  walls  and,  in 
view  of  the  cosmic  significance  of  the  number  seven  among  the 
Babylonians,  Jensen  supposes  5  that  the  city's  walls  are  an  imi- 
tation of  the  seven  concentric  zones  into  which  the  world  was 
divided.  However  this  may  be,  a  city  so  ancient  and  so  well 
fortified  must  have  played  a  most  important  part  in  old  Baby- 
lonian history,  second  only  in  importance,  if  not  equal,  to  Nip- 
pur. The  continued  influence  of  the  Ishtar  or  Nana  cult  of 
Erech  also  illustrates  the  significance  of  the  place.  It  is 
natural,  therefore,  to  find  traditions  surviving  of  the  history  of 
the  place. 

The  first  tablet  of  the  Gilgamesh  epic  contains  such  a 
reminiscence.  The  city  is  hard  pressed  by  an  enemy.  The 
misfortune    appears    to    be    sent    as   a    punishment    for   some 

i  Vorgeschichte  der  lndo-Eiiroj>aer,  p.  112. 

'-!  The  words  for  'city'  in  the  Semitic  languages  embody  this  idea. 

3  O/i/  Babylonian  fns,  ri/tion,  i.  2,  p.  48. 

4  IIR.  50,  55-57;  VR.  41,  17,  18.  An  interesting  reference  to  the  wall  of  Freeh 
occurs  Hilprecht,  ib.  i.  1,  no.  26. 

ft  Kosmologie,  p.  172. 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  473 

offence.1  Everything  is  in  a  state  of  confusion.  Asses  and 
cows  destroy  their  young.  Men  weep  and  women  sigh.  The 
gods  and  spirits  of  "  walled  Uruk  "  have  become  hostile  forces. 
For  three  years  the  enemy  lays  siege  to  the  place.  The  gates 
of  the  city  remain  closed.  Who  the  enemy  is  we  are  not  told, 
and  such  is  the  fragmentary  condition  of  the  tablet  that  we  are 
left  to  conjecture  the  outcome  of  tlie  city's  distress. 

In  the  second  tablet,  Gilgamesh  is  introduced  as  a  hero  of 
superior  strength  and  in  control  of  Uruk.  Is  he  the  savior  of 
the  city  or  its  conqueror?  One  is  inclined  to  assume  the  latter, 
for  the  inhabitants  of  Uruk  are  represented  as  complaining  that 
Gilgamesh  has  taken  away  the  sons  and  daughters  of  the  place. 
From  a  passage  in  a  subsequent  tablet  it  appears  that  Uruk  is 
not  the  native  place  of  the  hero,  but  Maracla.2  Moreover,  the 
name  Gilgamesh  is  not  Babylonian,  so  that  the  present  evidence 
speaks  in  favor  of  regarding  the  first  episode  in  the  epic  as  a 
reminiscence  of  the  extension  of  Gilgamesh's  dominion  by  the 
conquest  of  Uruk.  When  this  event  took  place  we  have  no 
means  of  determining  with  even  a  remote  degree  of  probability. 
The  representation  of  Gilgamesh  on  very  ancient  seal  cylinders3 
warrants  us  in  passing  beyond  the  third  millennium,  but  more 
than  this  can  hardly  be  said. 

Gilgamesh  is  a  hero  of  irresistible  power.  The  inhabitants 
of  Uruk  appeal  for  help  to  Aruru,  who  has  created  Gilgamesh  : 

He  has  no  rival..  .   .  . 
Thy  inhabitants  [appeal  for  aid  ?]. 
Gilgamesh  does  not  leave  a  son  to  his  father. 
Day  and  night,  .   .  . 

i  Jeremias'  Izdubar-Nimrod,  p.  15,  conjectures  that  the  death  of  the  king  has  evoked 
distress,  but  that  is  highly  improbable.  That  the  fragment  under  consideration  be- 
longs to  the  beginning  of  the  epic  is  tolerably  certain,  though  not  absolutely  so. 

2  Sixth  tablet,  1.  192.  He  brings  offerings  to  Lugal-Marada,  i.e.,  the  king  of 
Marada  —  a  solar  deity.     See  p.  4S6. 

3  Heuzey,  Sccanx  incdits  des  Rots  d'Agade  (Revue  d1  Assyriologie,  iv.  3,  p.  9). 


r 


474  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

He,  the  ruler  of  walled  Uruk,  .  .  . 

I  If,  their  ruler,  .  .   . 

The  strong,  the  preeminent,  the  cunning,  .  .  . 

Gilgamesh  dues  not  leave  the  virgin  to  [her  mother], 

The  daughter  to  her  warrior,  the  wife  to  her  husband. 

The  gods  [of  heaven  [  hear  their  cry. 

They  cry  aloud  to  Arum,  "  Thou  hast  created  him, 

Now  create  a  rival  (?)  to  him,  equal  to  taking  up  the  fight  against  him  (?)." 

So  much  at  least  is  clear  from  the  badly  mutilated  lines  that 
Gilgamesh  has  played  sad  havoc  with  the  inhabitants  of  Uruk. 
In  personal  combat,  as  it  would  appear,  he  has  triumphed  over 
the  warriors  of  the  place.  The  son  is  taken  away  from  his 
father,  the  virgins  are  taken  captive,  warriors  and  husbands  are 
snatched  from  those  dear  to  them.  Aruru  is  here  appealed  to 
as  the  creator  of  mankind.1  She  who  has  created  the  hero  is 
asked  to  produce  some  one  who  can  successfully  resist  Gilga- 
mesh.    Aruru  proceeds  to  do  so. 

Aruru,  upon  hearing  this,  forms  a  man  of  Aim.2 

Aruru  washes  her  hands,  takes  a  bit  of  clay,  and  throws  it  on  the  ground. 

She  creates  Eabani,  a  hero,  a  lofty  offspring,  the  possession  of  Ninib.8 


This  creature  Eabani  is  described  as  having  a  body  covered 
th  hair, 
about  him. 


with  hair.      He  has  long  (lowing  locks  and  lives  with  the  animals 


Eating  herbs  with  gazelles, 
Drinking  from  a  trough  with  cattle, 
Sporting  with  the  creatures  of  the  waters. 

The  description  evidently  recalls  man  living  in  a  savage  state, 
and,  to  judge  from  illustrations  of    Eabani  on  seal  cylinders, 

1  Sec  above,  p.  448. 

2  .  tnu  here  used  in  the  generic  sense  of '  lofty,' '  divine.'     The  phrase  is  equivalent 
to  the  Biblical  'image  of  God.' 

3  A  phrase  in  senile  way  again  indicative  of  Kahani's  likeness  to  a  deity. 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  475 

the  mythological  fancy  of  the  period  when  strange  monsters 
existed  of  hybrid  formation,  half-man,  half-beast,  has  influenced 
the  conception  of  this  strange  creature  who  is  to  combat  the 
invincible  Gilgamesh.  But  Gilgamesh  frustrates  the  plan.  He 
sends  a  messenger  known  as  S&du,  that  is,  '  the  hunter,'  and 
described  as  a  "wicked  man,"  to  ensnare  Eabani.1  For  three 
days  in  succession,  the  hunter  sees  Eabani  drinking  at  the 
trough  with  the  cattle,  but  is  unable  to  catch  him.  The  sight 
of  this  '  wild  man  of  the  woods  '  frightens  the  hunter.  He 
returns  to  Gilgamesh  for  further  instructions. 
Gilgamesh  spoke  to  the  hunter: 

Go,  hunter  mine,  and  take  with  thee  Ukhat. 

When  the  cattle  comes  to  tbe  trough, 

Let  her  tear  off  her  dress  and  disclose  her  nakedness. 

He  2  will  see  her  and  approach  her. 

His  cattle,  which  grew  up  on  his  field,  will  forsake  him. 

Ukhatu  is  a  name  for  a  harlot  devoted  to  the  worship  of  Ish- 
tar.  Other  names  for  such  devotees  are  Kharimtu3  and  Kizritu} 
Elsewhere  the  city  Uruk  is  called  "  the  dwelling  of  Anu  and 
Ishtar,  the  city  of  the  Kizreti,  Ukhati,  and  Kharim&ti," 5  and  in 
a  subsequent  tablet  of  the  Gilgamesh  epic  6  these  three  classes 
of  harlots  are  introduced  as  the  attendants  of  Ishtar,  obedient 
to  her  call.  The  conclusion  is  therefore  justified  that  Uruk  was 
one  of  the  centers  —  perhaps  the  center  —  of  the  obscene  rites 
to  which  Herodotus 7  has  several  references.  Several  other 
incidental  allusions  in  cuneiform  literature  to  the  sacred  prosti- 

1  That  Gilgamesh  undertakes  this,  and  not  the  gods  acting  in  the  interest  of  Uruk 
(as  Jeremias  and  others  assume),  follows  from  a  passage  in  Haupt's  edition,  pp.  10,  40. 

2  Eabani. 

3  Identical  with  our  own  word  "  harem." 

4  Perhaps  "  ensnarer." 

5  So  in  the  "  Dibbarra  "  legend.      See  p.  531  and  Delitzsch,  Handw'drterbuch, 
p.  41. 

6  Sixth  tablet,  11.  1S4,  1S5. 

7  Book  i.  §§  1S1,  182,  199. 


476  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

tution  carried  on  at  Babylonian  temples  confirm  Herodotus' 
statement  in  general,'  although  the  rite  never  assumed  the  large 
proportions  that  he  reports. 

On  the  other  hand,  Herodotus  does  not  appear  to  have  under- 
stood the  religious  significance  of  the  custom  that  he  designates 
as  '  shameful.'  The  name  given  to  the  harlot  among  Baby- 
lonians and  Hebrews,2  Kadishtu  or  K'deshd,  that  is,  'the  sacred 
one,'  is  sufficient  evidence  that,  at  its  origin,  the  rite  was  not 
the  product  of  obscene  tendencies,  but  due  to  naive  concep- 
tions connected  with  the  worship  of  Ishtar  as  the  goddess 
of  fertility. 

The  introduction  of  Ukhat,  however,  as  an  aid  to  carry  out 
the  designs  of  Gilgamesh  is  devoid  of  religious  significance,  and 
one  is  inclined  to  regard  the  Eabani  episode,  or  at  least  certain 
portions  of  it,  as  having  had  at  one  time  an  existence  quite 
independent  of  Gilgamesh's  adventures.  The  description  of 
Eabani  is,  as  we  have  seen,  based  upon  mythological  ideas. 
The  creation  of  Eabani  recalls  the  Biblical  tradition  of  the  for- 
mation of  the  first  man,  and  Ukhat  appears  to  be  the  Baby- 
lonian equivalent  to  the  Biblical  Eve,  who  through  her  charms 
entices  Eabani  away  from  the  gazelles  and  cattle,"'  and  brings 
him  to  Uruk,  the  symbol  of  civilized  existence. 

It  is  significant  that  in  the  Biblical  narrative,  the  sexual 
instinct  and  the  beginnings  of  culture  as  symbolized  by  the  tree 

1  See  Jeremias'  Izditbar-Nimrod,  pp.  59,  60 ;  Nikel,  Hcrodot  und  die  Keilschrift- 
forschung,  pp.  84-86. 

-  The  protest  of  the  Pentateuch  (Dent,  xxiii.  iS)  against  the  fT'desM,  as  also 
gainst  the  'male  devotee'  (KadesK),  shows  the  continued  popularity  of  the  rites. 

;!  It  is  to  be  noted  that  in  the  Yahwistic  narrative,  Adam  is  in  close  communica- 
tion with  the  animals  about  him  (Gen.  ii.  20).  It  is  tempting  also  to  connect  the 
Hebrew  form  of  Eve,  Khawwa  (or  fChawwat)  in  some  way  with  Ukhat,  not  etymo- 
logically  of  course,  but  as  suggestive  of  a  dependence  of  one  upon  the  other,  —  the 
Hebrew  upon  the  Babylonian  term.  Professor  Stade  {Zeits.f.  Alttest.  Wiss.t  1897, 
p.  210)  commenting  upon  Gen.  ii.  20,  points  out  that  Yahwe's  motive  for  asking 
Adam  to  name  the  animals  was  the  hope  that  he  would  find  a  '  helpmate  '  among 
them.  In  the  light  of  the  Babylonian  story  of  Eabani  living  with  animals,  Stade's 
suggestion  receives  a  striking  illustration. 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  477 

of  knowledge  ar?l°sely  associated.  According  to  rabbinical 
traditions,  the  seent  is  the  symbol  of  the  sexual  passion.1 

Eve  obtains  r.itrol  of  Adam  with  the  aid  of  this  passion. 
In  the  episode  o^abaru>  Ukhat,  and  the  hunter  —  who,  be  it 
noted,  plays  t:  Part  °f  tne  tempter  —  we  seem  to  have  an 
ancient  le°-enc^ormmg  Part  °f  some  tradition  regarding  the 
beo"innino-s  of  lns  history,  and  which  has  been  brought  into 
connection  with  P  Gilgamesh  epic,  —  when  and  how,  it  is 
impossible,  of  course^0  sav- 

The  hunter  follows  fn instructions  of  Gilgamesh.  Eabani 
falls  a  victim  to  Ukhat's  attractToua. 

Ukhat  exposed  her  breast,  revealed  her  nakedness,  took  o\\er  clothinr 
Unabashed  she  enticed  him. 

The  details  of  the  meeting  are  described  with  a  frank  s 
plicity  that  points  again  to  the  antiquity  of  the  legend. 

For  six  days  and  seven  nights  Eabani  enjoyed  the  love  of  Ukhat. 

After  he  had  satiated  himself  with  her  charms, 

He  turned  his  countenance  to  his  cattle. 

The  reposing  gazelles  saw  Eabani, 

The  cattle  of  the  field  turned  away  from  him. 

Eabani  was  startled  and  grew  faint, 

His  limbs  grew  stiff  as  his  cattle  ran  off. 

But  Ukhat  has  gained  control  of  him.  He  gives  up  the 
thought  of  gazelles  and  cattle,  and  returns  to  enjoy  the  love  of 
Ukhat.     His  senses  return, 

And  he  again  turns  in  love,  enthralled  at  the  feet  of  the  harlot, 
Looks  up  into  her  face  and  listens  as  the  woman  speaks  to  him. 
The  woman2  speaks  to  Eabani: 
"  Lofty  art  thou,  Eabani,  like  to  a  god. 
Why  dost  thou  lie  with  the  beasts  ? 
Come,  I  will  bring  thee  to  walled  Uruk, 

1  See  Trumbull,  The  Threshold  Covenant,  p.  239. 

2  Kharimtu.     In  Arabic  the  word  is  likewise  used  for  '  woman  '  in  general. 


47S  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELlG)y 

To  the  glorious  house,1  the  dwelling  of  AnulCj  rsntari 
To  the  seat  of  Gilgamesh,  perfect  in  power, 
Surpassing  men  in  strength,  like  a  mountain  |j  >> 

It  would  appear  from  these  lines  that  previou<0  tiie  COming 
of  Ukhat,  Eabani  had  satisfied  his  desire  on  U  beasts.  In 
Ukhat,  however,  he  found  a  worthier  mate,  anc\e  accordingly 
abandons  his  former  associates  to  cling  to  he- 

He  yields  and  obeys  her  command. 
n  the  wisdom  of  his  heart  he  jegnizeci  a  companion.2 

In  the  conti/ation  of  the  story  Eabani  becomes  the  companion 

(iiliramesh,  but  I  venture  to  think  that  the  title  was  trans- 

•red  in  the  development  of  the  epic  from  Ukhat,  to  whom  it 

iginally  belonged.     It  is  she  who  awakens  in  Eabani  a  sense 

l  dignity  which  made  him  superior  to  the  animals.     The  word 

cranslated  'companion'3  may  be  appropriately  applied  to  Ukhat. 

Eabani  clings  to  her,  as  Adam  does  to  Eve  after  she  'is  brought'4 

to  him.     Ukhat  becomes  Eabani's  'companion,'  just  as  Eve 

becomes  the  '  helpmate  '  of  Adam. 

These  considerations  strengthen  the  supposition  that  the 
Eabani-Ukhat  episode  is  quite  distinct  from  the  career  of  Gilga- 
mesh. Had  the  epic  originated  in  Babylon  or  Nippur,  Eabani 
and  Ukhat  would  have  been  brought  to  Babylon  or  Nippur. 
As  it  is,  Eabani  asks  Ukhat  to  conduct  him 


1  The  temple  at  Uruk  is  meant. 

2  Jeremias  translates  '  seeks  a  friend,'  and  refers  the  words  to  Gilgamesh,  but  there 
is  nothing  in  the  narrative  to  justify  us  in  assuming  that  Eabani  was  thinking  of  the 
hero. 

:i  It  is  used  as  a  synonym  of  taffu.  '  associate,'  Delitzsch,  Handw'drterbitch, 
p.  io.  Ideographically,  it  is  composed  of  two  elements,  'strength'  and  'acquire.' 
'  Companion  in  arms'  is  the  fellowship  originally  meant. 

■I  The  Hebrew  verb  (Gen.  ii.  22)  expresses  sexual  union  and  precisely  the  same 
verb  is  used  in  the  cuneiform  narrative  when  Eabani  comes  to  Ukhat  (Haupt's  edi- 
tion, p.  1 1,  1.  21). 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  479 

To  the  glorious  dwelling,  the  sacred  seat  of  Arm  and  Ishtar, 
To  the  seat  of  Gilgamesh,  perfect  in  power, 
Surpassing  men  in  strength  like  a  mountain  bull. 

Unfortunately,  the  tablet  at  this  point  is  defective,1  and  the 
following  three  tablets  are  represented  by  small  fragments  only, 
from  which  it  is  exceedingly  difficult  to  determine  more  than 
the  general  course  of  the  narrative. 

Ukhat  and  Eabani  proceed  to  Uruk.  There  is  an  interesting 
reference  to  '  a  festival '  and  to  festive  garments,2  but  whether, 
as  would  appear,  Ukhat  and  Eabani  are  the  ones  who  clothe 
themselves 3  upon  reaching  Uruk  or  whether,  as  Jeremias 
believes,  a  festival  was  being  celebrated  at  the  place  it  is 
impossible  to  say.  Eabani  is  warned  in  a  dream  not  to  under- 
take a  test  of  strength  with  Gilgamesh,4 

Whose  power  is  stronger  than  thine, 

Who  rests  not,  .  .  .  neither  by  day  or  night. 

O  Eabani,  change  thy  .  .  . 

Shamash  loves  Gilgamesh, 

Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea  have  given  him  wisdom. 

Before  thou  comest  from  the  mountain 

Gilgamesh  in  Uruk  will  see  thy  dream.5 

Dreams  play  an  important  part  in  the  epic.  They  constitute 
the  regular  means  of  communication  between  man  and  the  gods, 
so  regular  that  at  times  the  compilers  of  the  epic  do  not  find  it 
necessary  to  specify  the  fact,  but  take  it  for  granted.  To  Gil- 
gamesh, Eabani' s  coming  is  revealed  and  he  asks  his  mother 
Aruru  to  interpret  the  dream. 

The  third  and  fourth  tablets  take  us  back  to  the  history  of 
Uruk.     Gilgamesh,  aided  by  his  patron  Shamash,  succeeds  in 

1  We  can  still  distinguish  (Haupt,  12,  47)  'I  will  fetch  him.'  Jeremias'  rendering, 
"  I  will  fight  with  him,"  is  erroneous. 

2  Haupt,  13,  7-8.  3  Cf.  Gen.  iii.  5  and  21. 

4  The  text  of  the  following  lines  restored  by  combining  Haupt,  p.  13,  with  a  sup- 
plementary fragment  published  by  Jeremias'  Izdubar-Nimrod,  pi.  3. 

5  I.e.,  he  will  be  told  about  thy  dream  through  the  wisdom  given  to  him. 


4S0  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

gaining  Eabani  as  a  '  companion  '  in  a  contest  that  is  to  be 
waged  against  Khumbaba,  who  threatens  Uruk.  The  name  of 
this  enemy  is  Elamitic,  and  it  has  been  customary  to  refer  the 
campaign  against  him  to  the  tradition  recorded  by  Berosus  of 
a  native  uprising  against  Elamitic  rule,  which  took  place  about 
2400  B.C.1  It  must  be  said,  however,  that  there  is  no  satisfactory 
evidence  for  this  supposition.  Elam,  lying  to  the  east  of  the 
Euphrates,  was  at  all  times  a  serious  menace  to  Babylonia. 
Hostilities  with  Elam  are  frequent  before  and  after  the  days  of 
Hammurabi.  If  Gilgamesh,  as  seems  certain,  is  a  Cassite,-  the 
conflict  between  him  and  Khumbaba  would  represent  a  rivalry 
among  Cassitic  or  Elamitic  hordes  for  the  possession  of  Uruk 
and  of  the  surrounding  district.  While  the  Cassites  do  not  come 
to  the  front  till  the  eighteenth  century,  at  which  time  the  center 
of  their  kingdom  is  Nippur,  there  is  every  reason  to  believe 
that  they  were  settled  in  the  Euphrates  Valley  long  before  that 
period.  The  course  of  conquest  —  as  of  civilization  in  Baby- 
lonia —  being  from  the  south  to  the  north,  we  would  be  justified 
in  looking  for  the  Cassites  in  Uruk  before  they  extended  their 
dominion  to  Nippur.  At  all  events,  the  conflict  between  Gilga- 
mesh and  Khumbaba  must  be  referred  to  a  much  more  ancient 
period  than  the  rise  of  the  city  of  Babylon  as  a  political  center. 
Shamash  and  Gilgamesh  promise  Eabani  royal  honors  if  he 
will  join  friendship  with  them. 

Come,  and  on  a  great  couch, 

On  a  fine  couch  he  3  will  place  thee. 

Me  will  give  thee  a  seat  to  the  left. 

The  rulers  of  the  earth  will  kiss  thy  feet. 

All  the  people  of  Uruk  will  crouch  before  thee. 

Eabani  consents,  and  in  company  with  Gilgamesh  proceeds 
to  the  fortress  of   Khumbaba.      It  is  a  long  and  hard  road  that 

1  See,  e.g.,  Jeremias'  Fzdubar-Nimrod,  p.  21. 

2  So,  e.g.,  Hommel  (Altisraelitisclte  Ueberlieferung,  p.  ^5).     He  is  certainly  not 
a  native  of  Babylonia.  :i  Gilgamesh. 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  481 

they  have  to  travel.  The  terror  inspired  by  Khumbaba  is  com- 
pared to  that  aroused  by  a  violent  storm,  but  Gilgamesh  receives 
assurances,  in  no  less  than  three  dreams,  that  he  will  come 
forth  unharmed  out  of  the  ordeal. 

The  fortress  of  Khumbaba  is  situated  in  a  grove  of  won- 
derful grandeur,  in  the  midst  of  which  there  is  a  large  cedar, 
affording  shade  and  diffusing  a  sweet  odor.  The  description 
reminds  one  forcibly  of  the  garden  of  Eden,  and  the  question 
suggests  itself  whether  in  this  episode  of  the  Gilgamesh  epic, 
we  have  not  again  a  composite  production  due  to  the  combina- 
tion of  Gilgamesh's  adventures  with  the  traditions  regarding 
Eabani.  Unfortunately  the  description  of  the  contest  with 
Khumbaba  is  missing.  There  is  a  reference  to  the  tyrant's 
death,1  but  that  is  all.  In  the  sixth  tablet,  Gilgamesh  is  cele- 
brated as  the  victor  and  not  Eabani.  We  may  conclude, 
therefore,  that  the  episode  belongs  originally  to  Gilgamesh's 
career,  and  that  Eabani  has  been  introduced  into  it.  On  the 
other  hand,  for  Eabani  to  be  placed  in  a  beautiful  garden 
would  be  a  natural  consequence  of  his  deserting  the  gazelles 
and  cattle,  —  the  reward,  as  it  were,  of  his  clinging  to  Ukhat. 
Separating  the  composite  elements  of  the  epic  in  this  way,  we 
have  as  distinct  episodes  in  Gilgamesh's  career,  the  conquest 
of  Uruk  and  of  other  places,2  and  his  successful  campaign 
against  Khumbaba.  With  this  story  there  has  been  combined 
a  popular  tradition  of  man's  early  savage  state,  his  departure 
from  this  condition  through  the  sexual  passion  aroused  by  Uk- 
hat, who  becomes  his  'companion,'  and  with  whom  or  through 
whom  he  is  led  to  a  beautiful  garden  as  a  habitation. 

The  sixth  tablet  introduces  a  third  element  into  the  epic,  — 
a  mythological  one.  The  goddess  Ishtar  pleads  for  the  love  of 
Gilgamesh.  She  is  attracted  to  him  by  his  achievements  and 
his  personality.     The  tablet  begins  with  a  description  of  the 

1  Haupt,  p.  26. 

2  A  city  Ganganna  is  mentioned  in  the  first  tablet  (Haupt,  pp.  51,  6). 


482  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION 

celebration  of  Gilgamesh's  victory.  The  hero  exchanges  his 
blood-stained  clothes  for  white  garments,  polishes  his  weapons, 
and  places  a  crown  on  his  head. 

To  secure  the  grace  of  Gilgamesh,  the  exalted  Ishtar  raises  her  eyes. 

Come,  Gilgamesh,  be  my  husband, 

Thy  love  1  grant  me  as  a  gift, 

]!e  thou  my  husband  and  I  will  be  thy  wife. 

I  will  place  thee  on  a  chariot  of  lapis  lazuli  and  gold, 

With  wheels  of  gold  and  horns  of  sapphire  (?) 

Drawn  by  great   .  .  .  steeds  (?). 

With  sweet  odor  of  cedars  enter  our  house. 

Upon  entering  our  house, 

.  .  .  will  kiss  thy  feet. 

Kings,  lords,  and  princes  will  be  submissive  to  thee, 

Products  of  mountain  and  land,  they  will  bring  as  tribute  to  thee. 

Ishtar  appears  here  as  the  goddess  of  love  and  fertility.  As 
such  she  promises  Gilgamesh  also  abundance  of  herds.  But 
Gilgamesh  rejects  the  offer,  giving  as  his  reason  the  sad  fate 
encountered  by  these  who  were  victims  of  Ishtar's  love  : 

Tammuz,  the  consort  of  thy  youth  (?), 

Thou  causest  to  weep  every  year. 

The  bright-colored  allallu  bird  thou  didst  love. 

Thou  didst  crush  him  and  break  his  pinions. 

In  the  woods  he  stands  and  laments,  "  O  my  pinions  ! " 

Thou  didst  love  a  lion  of  perfect  strength, 

Seven  and  seven  times  -  thou  didst  bury  him  in  the  corners  (?), 

Thou  didst  love  a  horse  superior  in  the  fray, 

With  whip  and  spur3  thou  didst  urge  him  on. 

Thou  didst  force  him  on  for  seven  double  hours,' 

Thou  didst  force  him  on  when  wearied  and  thirsty; 

I  lis  mother  Silili  thou  madest  weep. 

In  this  way  Gilgamesh  proceeds  to  upbraid  the  goddess, 
instancing,  in  addition,  her  cruel  treatment  of  a  shepherd,  and 
apparently  also  of  a  giant,  whom  she  changed  to  a  dwarf.     The 

1  So  Haupt,  Beitrage  zur  Assyriologie,  i.  112. 

-  I.e..  again  and  again.  3  This  is  the  general  sense  of  the  three  terms  used. 

4  I.e.,  an  army's  march  of  fourteen  hours.     See  pp.  490,  503,  521. 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  4S3 

allusions,  while  obscure,  are  all  of  a  mythological  character. 
The  weeping  of  Tammuz  symbolizes  the  decay  of  vegetation  after 
the  summer  season.  The  misfortunes  that  afflict  the  bird,  lion, 
and  horse  similarly  indicate  the  loss  of  beauty  and  strength, 
which  is  the  universal  fate  of  those  who  once  enjoyed  those 
attributes.  Ishtar,  as  the  great  mother,  produces  life  and 
strength,  but  she  is  unable  to  make  life  and  strength  perma- 
nent. Popular  belief  makes  her  responsible  for  decay  and 
death,  since  life  and  fertility  appear  to  be  in  her  hand.  Gilga- 
mesh,  as  a  popular  hero,  is  brought  into  association  by  popular 
traditions  with  Ishtar,  as  he  is  brought  into  relationships  with 
Eabani  and  Ukhat.  A  factor  in  this  association  was  the  neces- 
sity of  accounting  for  Gilgamesh's  death.  As  a  hero,  the  favor- 
ite of  the  gods  and  invincible  in  battle,  he  ought  to  enjoy  the 
privilege  of  the  gods  —  immortality.  The  question  had  to  be 
answered  how  he  came  to  forego  this  distinction.  The  insult  he 
offers  to  Ishtar  is  the  answer  to  this  question.  Knowing  that 
Ishtar,  although  the  giver  of  life,  does  not  grant  a  continuance 
of  it,  he  who  is  produced  by  Aruru  will  have  nothing  to  do  with 
the  great  goddess.  But  his  refusal  leads  to  a  dire  punishment, 
more  disastrous  even  than  the  alliance  with  Ishtar,  which  would 
have  culminated  in  his  being  eventually  shorn  of  his  strength. 

Ishtar,  determined  that  Gilgamesh  should  not  escape  her, 
flies  in  rage  to  her  father  Ann,  the  god  of  heaven,  and  tells  of 
the  mariner  in  which  she  has  been  treated.  Anu  comforts  her. 
Yielding  to  Ishtar's  request  he  creates  a  divine  bull,  known  as 
Alu,  i.e.;  the  strong  or  supreme  one,1  who  is  to  destroy  Gilga- 
mesh. At  this  point  in  the  narrative  Eabani  is  again  intro- 
duced. Gilgamesh  and  Eabani  together  proceed  to  the  contest 
with  the  bull,  as  they  formerly  proceeded  against  Khumbaba. 
On  seal  cylinders  this  fight  is  frequently  pictured.-  In  agree- 
ment with  the  description  in  the  narrative,  Eabani  takes  hold 

1  The  same  word  appears  in  incantation  texts  as  a  term  for  a  class  of  demons. 

2  See,  e.g.,  Jeremias'  Izdubar-Nimrod,  p.  26. 


4S4  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

of  the  tail  of  the  animal,  while  Gilgamesh  despatches  him  by 
driving  a  spear  into  the  bull's  heart.  Ishtar's  plan  is  thus 
frustrated. 

Ishtar  mounts  the  wall  of  walled  Uruk. 
In  violent  rage  she  pronounces  a  curse: 
"  Cursed  be  Gilgamesh,  who  has  enraged  me, 
Who  has  killed  the  divine  bull." 

Eabani  adds  insult  to  injury  by  challenging  the  goddess. 

Eabani,  upon  hearing  these  words  of  Ishtar, 

Takes  the  carcass  (?)  of  the  divine  bull  and  throws  it  into  her  face. 

Woe  to  thee  !  I  will  subdue  thee, 

I  will  do  to  thee  as  I  have  done  to  him.1 

The  mythological  motives  that  prompted  the  introduction  of 
Ishtar  into  this  tablet  now  become  apparent.  The  division  of 
the  epic  into  twelve  parts  is  due  to  scholastic  influences.  It  is 
certainly  not  accidental  that  the  calendar  also  consists  of  twelve 
months.  While  it  is  by  no  means  the  case  that  each  tablet 
corresponds  to  some  month,  still  in  the  case  of  the  sixth  and, 
as  we  shall  see,  in  the  case  of  the  seventh  and  eleventh  tablets, 
this  correspondence  is  certain.  The  sixth  month  is  designated 
as  the  month  of  the  "  Mission  of  Ishtar.''  What  this  mission  is 
we  shall  see  in  a  subsequent  chapter.2  In  this  month  was  cele- 
brated a  festival  to  Tammuz,  the  young  bridegroom  of  Ishtar, 
who  is  slain  by  the  goddess.  The  prophet  Ezekiel  gives  us  a 
picture  of  the  weeping  for  Tammuz."  which  formed  the  chief 
ceremony  of  the  clay. 

It  is  this  character  of  the  month  that  accounts  not  only  for 
the  introduction  of  the  Ishtar  episode  in  the  sixth  tablet,  but 
which  finds  further  illustrations  in  the  mourning  which  Ishtar 
and  her  attendants  indulge  in  after  the  death  of  the  divine  bull. 

Ishtar  assembled  the  Kizr6ti, 
Ukhati  and  Kharimati. 

Over  tlu-  carcass  of  Alii  they  raised  a  lamentation. 

1  I.e..  to  the  bull.  -  Chapter   xxv.  y  Ez.  viii.  14. 


THE    GILGAMESH  ETIC.  4S5 

These  three  classes  of  sacred  prostitutes  have  already  been 
dwelt  upon.1  With  more  material  at  our  disposal  regarding  the 
cult  of  Ishtar  or  Nana  of  Erech,  we  would  be  in  a  position  to 
specify  the  character  of  the  rites  performed  at  this  temple.  The 
statements  of  Herodotus  and  of  other  writers  suffice,  however, 
to  show  that  the  three  terms  represent  classes  of  priestesses 
attached  to  the  temple.  In  this  respect  the  Ishtar  cult  of  Erech 
was  not  unique,  for  we  have  references  to  priestesses  elsewhere. 
However,  the  function  of  the  priestess  in  religious  history  differs 
materially  from  that  of  the  priest.  She  is  not  a  mediator  between 
the  god  and  his  subjects,  nor  is  she  a  representative  of  the 
deity.  It  is  as  a  '  witch,'  that  by  virtue  of  the  association  of 
ideas  above  set  forth,2  she  is  able  to  determine  the  intentions 
of  the  gods.  Her  power  to  do  harm  is  supplemented  by  her 
ability  to  furnish  oracles.  In  this  capacity  we  have  already  come 
across  her,3  and  we  may  assume  that  giving  oracles  constituted 
a  chief  function  of  the  priestess  in  Babylonia.  It  was  further- 
more natural  to  conclude  that  as  a  'witch  '  and  '  oracle-giver,' 
the  priestess  belonged  to  the  deity  from  whom  she  derived  her 
power.  When  we  come  to  the  cult  of  a  goddess  like  Ishtar,  who 
is  the  symbol  of  fertility,  observances  that  illustrated  this  central 
notion  would  naturally,  form  an  ingredient  part  of  that  '  sympa- 
thetic magic,'  —  the  imitation  of  an  action  in  order  to  produce 
the  reality  —  which  dominates  so  large  a  proportion  of  early  reli- 
gious ceremonialism.  Among  many  nations  the  mysterious  as- 
pects of  woman's  fertility  lead  to  rites  that  by  a  perversion  of 
their  original  import  appear  to  be  obscene.4  In  the  reference  to 
the  three  classes  of  sacred  prostitutes,  we  have  an  evidence  that 
the  Babylonian  worship  formed  no  exception  to  the  rule.  But 
with  this  proposition  that  the  prostitutes  were  priestesses  attached 
to  the  Ishtar  cult  and  who  took  part  in  ceremonies  intended  to 
symbolize  fertility,  we  must  for  the  present  rest  content. 

1  See  above,  p.  475.  2  See  p.  267.  3  See  above,  p.  234. 

*  Trumbull,  The  Threshold  Covenant,  chapter  vii. 


4S6  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Gilgamesh,  secure  in  his  victory,  proceeds  to  offer  the  horns 
of  the  divine  bull  to  his  patron  Lugal-Marada,  the  'king'  of 
Marad,  and  who  appears  to  be  identical  with  Shamash  him- 
self. The  offering  is  accompanied  by  gifts  to  the  sanctuary  of 
precious  stones  and  oil.     There  is  general  rejoicing. 

The  episode  of  Gilgamesh's  contest  with  the  bull  also  belongs 
to  the  mythological  phases  of  the  epic.  The  bull  is  in  Babylo- 
nian mythology1  as  among  other  nations  a  symbol  of  the  storm. 
It  is  in  his  role  as  a  solar  deity  that  Gilgamesh  triumphs  over 
the  storm  sent  by  Anu,  that  is,  from  on  high.  In  the  following 
chapter,  we  will  come  across  another  form  of  this  same  myth 
suggested  evidently,  as  was  the  fight  of  Marduk  with  Tiamat, 
by  the  annual  storms  raging  in  Babylonia.  Gilgamesh  triumphs 
as  does  Marduk,  but  when  once  the  summer  solstice,  which 
represents  the  sun's  triumph,  is  past,  the  decline  of  the  sun's 
strength  begins  to  set  in.  This  is  indicated  by  the  subsequent 
course  of  the  narrative. 

The  scene  of  rejoicing  at  Gilgamesh's  triumph  is  changed  to 
one  of  sadness.  Eabani  is  snatched  away  from  Gilgamesh. 
The  few  fragments  of  the  seventh  and  eighth  tablets  do  not 
suffice  for  determining  exactly  in  what  way  this  happened,  but 
Ishtar  is  evidently  the  cause  of  the  misfortune.  A  fatal  ill- 
ness, it  would  seem,  seizes  hold  of  Eabani,  — ^whether  as  the 
result  of  a  further  contest  or  directly  sent,  it  is  impossible  to 
say.  For  twelve  days  he  lingers  and  then  is  taken  away.  As 
usual,  the  catastrophe  is  foreseen  in  dreams.  For  a  third  time2 
he  sees  a  vision  of  fire  and  lightning,  which  forebodes  the  end. 

The  fragmentary  condition  of  the  epic  at  this  point  is  par- 
ticularly unfortunate.  There  is  a  reference  to  Nippur,'"  of  which 
it  would  be  important  to  know  the  purpose. 

The  relationship  between  Gilgamesh  and   Eabani  would  be 

1  See  p.  5  36. 

-  Or  .is  a  third  dream.  It  will  be  recalled  that  in  a  previous  portion  of  the  epic 
(p.  -pSi),  Gilgamesh  has  three  dreams  in  succession.  :;  llaupt,  pp.  45,  53. 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  487 

much  clearer  if  the  seventh  and  eighth  tablets  were  preserved  in 
good  condition.  The  disappearance  of  Eabani  before  the  end 
of  the  epic  confirms,  however,  the  view  here  maintained,  that 
the  career  of  Eabani  was  originally  quite  independent  of  Gilga- 
mesh's  adventures.  His  death  is  as  superfluous  as  is  his  asso- 
ciation with  Eabani.  In  all  critical  moments  Gilgamesh  appears 
to  stand  alone.  He  conquers  Uruk,  and  it  is  he  who  celebrates 
the  victory  of  the  divine  bull.  The  subsequent  course  of  the 
narrative  after  Eabani's  death,  except  for  the  frequent  mention 
of  Gilgamesh's  lament  for  his  companion,  proceeds  undisturbed. 
Moreover,  Eabani's  punishment  appears  to  be  identical  with 
that  meted  out  to  Gilgamesh.  The  latter  is  also  stricken  with 
disease,  but  in  his  case,  the  disease  has  a  meaning  that  fits  in 
with  the  mythological  phases  of  the  epic.  The  seventh  month 
—  the  one  following  the  summer  solstice  — marks  the  beginning 
of  a  turning-point  in  the  year.  As  the  year  advances,  vegetation 
diminishes,  and  the  conclusion  was  naturally  drawn  that  the  sun 
upon  whom  vegetation  depended  had  lost  some  of  his  force. 
This  loss  of  strength  is  pictured  as  a  disease  with  which  the  sun 
is  afflicted.  In  this  way,  the  seventh  tablet  —  and  possibly  also 
the  eighth  —  continues  the  nature  myth  embodied  in  the  sixth. 
Haupt  has  ingeniously  conjectured  that  the  sickness  which 
affects  Gilgamesh  is  of  a  venereal  character.  The  hero  wan- 
ders  about  in  search  of  healing.  His  suffering  is  increased  by 
his  deep  sorrow  over  the  loss  of  his  'companion.'  The  death 
of  Eabani  presages  his  own  destruction,  and  he  dreads  the 
dreary  fate  in  store  for  him.  The  ninth  tablet  introduces  us 
to  this  situation. 

Gilgamesh  weeps  for  his  companion  Eabani. 

In  distress  he  is  stretched  out  on  the  ground.1 

'  I  will  not  die  like  Eabani. 

Sorrow  has  entered  my  body. 

Through  fear  of  death,  I  lie  stretched  out  on  the  ground.' 

1  Attitude  of  despair. 


488  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

He  determines  to  seek  out  a  mysterious  personage,  whom  he 

calls  Parnapishtim,1  the  son  of  Kidin- Marduk.2    This  personage 

has   in    some   way   escaped   the    fate   of   mankind  and  enjoys 

immortal  life.     He  is  called  the  "  distant  one."     His  dwelling 

is  far  off,  "  at  the  confluence  of  the  streams."    The  road  to  the 

place  is  full  of  clangers,  but  Gilgamesh,  undaunted,  undertakes 

the  journey.     The  hero  himself  furnishes  the  description. 

I  came  to  a  glen  at  night, 

Lions  I  saw  and  was  afraid. 

I  raised  my  head  and  prayed  to  Sin. 

To  the  leader  (?)  of  the  gods  my  prayer  came. 

[He  heard  my  prayer  (?)],  and  was  gracious  to  me. 

On  many  seal  cylinders  and  on  monuments,  Gilgamesh  is 
pictured  in  the  act  of  fighting  with  or  strangling  a  lion.  In  the 
preserved  portions  of  the  epic  no  reference  to  this  contest  has 
been  found:'5  We  should  look  for  it  at  this  point  of  the  narra- 
tive. The  following  lines  contain  a  reference  to  -weapons,  — 
ax  and  sword,  —  and  in  so  far  justify  the  supposition  that  some 
contest  takes  place.  But  the  text  is  too  mutilated  to  warrant 
further  conjectures.  After  escaping  from  the  clanger  occasioned 
by  the  lions,  Gilgamesh  comes  to  the  mountain  Mashu,  which 
is  described  as  a  place  of  terrors,  the  entrance  to  which  is 
guarded  by  '  scorpion-men.' 

He  reached  the  mountain  Mashu, 

Whose  exit  is  daily  guarded,   .   .   . 

Whose  back  extends  to  the  clam  of  heaven, 

i  I.e.,  '  offspring  of  life.'  1  adopt  Delitzsch's  reading  of  the  name.  Zimmern  and 
Jensen  prefer  Sitnafishtim,  but  see  liaupt's  remarks  on  the  objections  to  this  reading 
in  Schrader,  Keilinschriften  mid  das  Altc  Testament  (3d  edition)  a.  I.  At  the 
recent  Eleventh  International  Congress  of  Orientalists,  Scheil  presented  a  tablet 
dealing  with  the  deluge  narrative.  If  his  reading  is  correct,  the  evidence  would  be 
final  lor  the  form  Parnapishtim,  formerly  proposed  by  Zimmern  (Babylonische  Buss- 
fsalinen,  p.  26).     See  p.  507,  note  1. 

-"Client  of  Marduk."  The  name  Marduk  appears  here  under  the  ideographic 
designation  Tutu.    The  identification  witli   Marduk  may  be  due  to  later  traditions. 

3  J eremias'  suggestion (Izdubar-Nimrod,  p.18)  that  the  fight  withthelion  belongs  to 
the  first  tablet,  where  mention  is  made  of  a  wild  animal  of  some  kind,  is  not  a<  1  eptable. 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  489 

And  whose  breast  1  reaches  to  Aralu  ; 2 

Scorpion-men  guard  its  gate, 

Of  terror-inspiring  aspect,  whose  appearance  is  deadly, 

Of  awful  splendor,  shattering  mountains. 

At  sunrise  and  sunset  they  keep  guard  over  the  sun. 

It  will  be  recalled  that  the  earth  is  pictured  by  the  Babylo- 
nians as  a  mountain.  The  description  of  Mashu  is  dependent 
upon  this  conception.  The  mountain  seems  to  be  coextensive 
with  the  earth.  The  clam  of  heaven  is  the  point  near  which 
the  sun  rises,  and  if  the  scorpion-men  guard  the  sun  at  sunrise 
and  sunset,  the  mountain  must  extend  across  to  the  gate  through 
which  the  sun  passes  at  night  to  dip  into  the  great  Apsu? 

Aralu  is  situated  under  the  earth,  and  Mashu,  reaching  down 
to  Aralu,  must  be  again  coextensive  with  the  earth  in  this 
direction.  The  description  of  Mashu  accordingly  is  a  reflex  of 
the  cosmological  conceptions  developed  in  Babylonia.  The 
scorpion-men  pictured  on  seal  cylinders4  belong  to  the  mythical 
monsters,  half-man,  half-beast,  with  which  the  world  was  peo- 
pled at  the  beginning  of  things.  However,  there  is  also  an 
historical  background  to  the  description.  The  name  Mashu 
appears  in  texts  as  the  Arabian  desert  to  the  west  and  south- 
west of  the  Euphrates  Valley.5  It  is  called  a  land  of  dryness, 
where  neither  birds  nor  gazelles  nor  wild  asses  are  found.  Even 
the  bold  Assyrian  armies  hesitated  before  passing  through  this 
region.  In  the  light  of  the  early  relationships  between  Baby- 
lonia and  Arabia,6  this  reference  to  Mashu  may  embody  a  tradi- 
tion of  some  expedition  to  Southern  Arabia.7     Beyond  Mashu 

1  I.e.,  inner  side. 

2  The  name  of  the  cave  underneath  the  earth  where  the  dead  dwell. 

3  See  above,  p.  443. 

4  See,  e.g.,  Jeremias'  Izdubar-Nimrod,  p.  2S. 

5  See  the  passages  in  Delitzsch,  Wo  Lag  das  Paradics,  pp.  242,  243. 

G  See  above,  p.  39,  and  Hommel's  full  discussion,  Altisraelitische  Ueberlieferung, 
chapter  iii. 

'  Hommel  {Altisraelitische  Ueberlieferung,  pp.  35,  37)  suggests  a  migration  of 
Cassites  from  Elam  to  Eastern  Africa. 


490  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

lay  a  great  sea,  —  perhaps  the  Arabian  Sea,  —  which  Gilgamesh 
is  obliged  to  cross  ere  he  reaches  his  goal. 

Gilgamesh  is  terrified  at  the  sight  of  these  scorpion-men 
but  the  latter  have  received  notice  of  his  coming  and  permit 
him  to  pass  through  the  gate. 

A  scorpion-man  addresses  his  wife  : 

"  He  who  comes  to  us  is  of  divine  appearance." 

The  wife  of  the  scorpion-man  agrees  that  Gilgamesh  is  in 
part  divine,  but  she  adds  that  in  part  he  is  human.  In  further 
conversation,  the  scorpion-man  announces  that  it  is  by  express 
command  of  the  gods  that  Gilgamesh  has  come  to  the  mountain. 
Gilgamesh  approaches  and  tells  the  scorpion-man  of  his  purpose. 
The  hero,  recovering  his  courage,  is  not  held  back  by  the  de- 
scription that  the  scorpion-man  gives  him  of  the  dangers  that 
beset  the  one  who  ventures  to  enter  the  dreadful  district.  The 
gate  is  opened  and  the  journey  begins. 

Me  gropes  his  way  for  one  double  hour, 

With  dense  darkness  enclosing  him  on  all  sides. 

I  [e  gropes  his  way  for  two  double  hours, 

With  dense  darkness  enclosing  him  on  all  sides. 

After  traversing  a  distance  of  twenty-four  hours'  march,  Gil- 
gamesh beholds  a  tree  of  splendid  appearance,  decorated  with 
precious  stones  and  bearing  beautiful  fruit.  Finally  he  reaches 
the  sea,  where  the  maiden  Sabitum  has  her  palace  and  throne. 
Upon  seeing  the  hero,  the  maiden  locks  the  gates  of  her  palace 
and  will  not  permit  Gilgamesh  to  pass  across  the  sea.  Gilga- 
mesh pleads  with  Sabitum,  tells  of  the  loss  of  his  friend  Eabani, 
'who  has  become  dust,"  and  whose  fate  he  does  not  wish  to 
share. 

Gilgamesh  speaks  to  Sabitum: 

[Now]  Sabitum,  which  is  the  way  to  Parnapishtim  ? 
If  it  is  possible,  lei  me  cross  the  ocean. 
If  it  is  not  possible,  let  me  stretch  myself  on  the  ground."2 

1   Haupt,  pp.  12,  67.  '-  Attitude  of  despair 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  491 

Sabitum  speaks  to  Gilgamesh  : 

"  O  Gilgamesh  !  there  has  never  been  a  ferry, 

And  no  one  has  ever  crossed  the  ocean. 

Shamash,  the  hero,  has  crossed  it,  but  except  Shamash,  who  can  cross  it  ? 

Difficult  is  the  passage,  very  difficult  the  path. 

Impassible  (?)  the  waters  of  death  that  are  guarded  by  a  bolt. 

How  canst  thou,  O  Gilgamesh,  traverse  the  ocean  ? 

And  after  thou  hast  crossed  the  waters  of  death,  what  wilt  thou  do  ?  " 

Sabitum  then  tells  Gilgamesh  that  there  is  one  possibility  of 
his  accomplishing  his  task.  If  Ardi-Ea,1  the  ferryman  2  of 
Parnapishtim,  will  take  Gilgamesh  across,  well  and  good  ;  if 
not,  he  must  abandon  all  hope. 

The  ocean,  though  not  expressly  called  Apsu,  is  evidently 
identical  with  the  great  body  of  waters  supposed  to  both  sur- 
round the  earth  and  to  flow  beneath  it.3  The  reference  to  'the 
waters  of  death  '  thus  becomes  clear.  The  gathering-place  of 
the  dead  being  under  the  earth,  near  to  the  Apsu,  the  great 
'  Okeanos '  forms  a  means  of  approach  to  the  nether  world.  It 
is  into  this  ocean,  forming  part  of  the  Apsu,  that  the  sun  dips 
at  evening  and  through  which  it  passes  during  the  night.  The 
scene  between  Gilgamesh  and  Sabitum  accordingly  is  suggested, 
in  part,  by  the  same  cosmological  conceptions  that  condition 
the  description   of  the  mountain  Mashu. 

Sabitum  herself  is  a  figure  that  still  awaits  satisfactory  ex- 
planation. She  is  called  the  goddess  Siduri.4  The  name  of 
this  goddess  is  found  as  an  element  in  proper  names,  but  of 
her  traits  we  know  nothing.  Sabitum  appears  originally  to 
have  been  a  term  descriptive  of  her,  and  Hommel 5  may  be 
right  in  explaining  the  name  as  '  the  one  from  Sabu,'  6  and  in 
taking  the  latter  as  the  name  of  a  district  in  Arabia.  It  is 
tempting  to  think  of  the   famous  Saba  in   Southern  Arabia. 

1  I.e.,  '  servant  of  Ea.'     The  reading  Ardi-Ea  is  preferable  to  Arad-Ea. 

2  Lit.,  '  sailor.'  3  See  above,  p.  443. 

4  Haupt,  pp.  64,  36  ;  65,  1  &  Altisraelitische  Ucbcrliefernng,  p.  35. 

6  Turn  is  the  feminine  ending. 


492  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Obedient  to  the  advice  of   Sabitum,  Gilgamesh  tells  Ardi-Ea 
his  story  and  also  his  desire. 

Now  Ardi-Ea,  which  is  the  way  to  [Parnapishtim  ?] . 

If  it  is  possible,  let  me  cross  the  ocean, 

And  if  not  possible,  let  me  lie  outstretched  on  the  ground. 

Ardi-Ea  consents,  and  tells  Gilgamesh  to  take  his  ax,  to  go 
'into  the  woods,  and  to  cut  down  a  large  pole  that  may  serve  as 
a  rudder. 

( rilgamesh,  upon  hearing  this, 

Takes  an  ax  in  his  hand,  .  .  . 

Goes  to  the  wood  and  makes  a  rudder  five^ar1  long. 

Gilgamesh  and  Ardi-Ea  mount  the  ship. 


The  ship  tosses  from  side  to  side. 

After  a  course  of  one  month  and  fifteen  days,  on  the  third  day2 

Ardi-Ea  reaches  the  waters  of  death. 
This  appears  to  be  the  most  dangerous  part  of  the  voyage. 
Ardi-Ea  urges  Gilgamesh  to  cling  to  the  rudder,  and  counts  the 
strokes  he  is  to  take.3  The  waters  are  not  extensive,  for  only 
twelve  strokes  are  enumerated;  but  the  current  is  so  strong  that 
it  is  with  the  utmost  difficulty  that  Gilgamesh  succeeds  in  pass- 
ing through  them.  At  last,  Gilgamesh  is  face  to  face  with 
Parnapishtim.  The  latter  is  astonished  to  see  a  living  person 
come  across  the  waters.  Gilgamesh  addresses  Parnapishtim 
from  the  ship,  recounts  his  deeds,  among  which  we  distinguish4 
the  killing  of  a  panther,  of  Alu,  of  the  divine  bull,  and  of  Khum- 
baba.  The  death  of  Eabani  is  also  dwelt  upon,  and  then 
Gilgamesh  pleads  with  Parnapishtim,  tells  him  of  the  long, 
difficult  way  that  he  has  traveled,  and  of  all  that  he  has  encoun- 
tered on  the  road. 

I  >ifficult  lands  I  passed  through, 
All  seas  I  crossed. 

1  A  large  measure. 

2  oi  the  week?     Hommel  and  others  interpret  that  Gilgamesh  accomplishes  the 
'fortv  five  days'  journey'  in  three  days. 

:;   This  I  take  to  be  the  meaning  of  the  numbers  introduced  at  this  point. 
1    The  text  is  badly  mutilated. 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  493 

Parnapishtim  expresses  his  sympathy: 

Gilgamesh  has  filled  his  heart  with  woe, 
But  neither  gods  nor  men  [can  help  him  (?)]. 

Parnapishtim  thereupon  addresses  Gilgamesh,  showing  him 

how  impossible  it  is  for   any  mortal   to   escape   death.     The 

inexorable  law  will  prevail  as  long  as  '  houses  continue  to  be 

built,'  as  long  as  '  friendships  '  and  'hostilities  '  prevail,  as  long 

'as  the  waters  fill  (?)  the  sea.'     The  Anunnaki,  the  great  gods, 

and  the  goddess  Mammitum,  the  creators  of  everything 

Determine  death  and  life. 

No  one  knows  the  days  of  death.1 

At  this  point  Gilgamesh  propounds  a  most  natural  question: 
How  comes  it,  if  what  Parnapishtim  says  is  true,  that  the  latter 
is  alive,  while  possessing  all  the  traits  of  a  human  being?  The 
eleventh  tablet  of  the  epic  begins : 

Gilgamesh  speaks  to  him,  to  Parnapishtim,  the  far-removed  : 

"  I  gaze  at  thee  in  amazement,  Parnapishtim. 

Thy  appearance  is  normal.     As  I  am,  so  art  thou. 

Thy  entire  nature  2  is  normal.     As  I  am,  so  art  thou. 

Thou  art  completely  equipped  for  the  fray.3 

Armor4  (?)  thou  hast  placed  upon  thee. 

Tell  me  how  thou  didst  come  to  obtain  eternal  life  among  the  gods." 

In  reply,  Parnapishtim  tells  the  story  of  his  escape  from  the 
common  fate  of  mankind.  The  story  is  a  long  one  and  has  no' 
connection  with  the  career  of  Gilgamesh.  It  embodies  a  recol- 
lection of  a  rain-storm  that  once  visited  a  city,  causing  a  general 
destruction,  but  from  which  Parnapishtim  and  his  family  mirac- 
ulously escaped.  The  main  purport  of  the  tale  is  not  to  em- 
phasize this  miracle,  but  the  far  greater  one  that,  after  having 
been  saved  from  the  catastrophe,  Parnapishtim  should  also  have 
been  granted  immortal  life.     The  moral,  however,  is  that  the  ex- 

1  There  is  no  limit  to  the  rule  of  death.     Death  alone  is  'immortal.' 

2  As  Haupt  correctly  interprets. 

3  This  appears  to  be  the  sense  of  this  rather  obscure  line. 

4  Read  [sir-ia]-am  ? 


494  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

ception  proves  the  rule.  With  this  tradition  of  the  destruction 
of  a  certain  place,  there  has  been  combined  a  nature  myth  sym- 
bolizing the  annual  overflow  of  the  Euphrates,  and  the  temporary 
disappearance  of  all  land  that  this  inundation  brought  about, 
prior  to  the  elaborate  canal  system  that  was  developed  in  the 
valley.  It  is  the  same  myth  that  we  have  come  across  in  the 
creation  epic  and  which,  as  we  have  seen,  was  instrumental  in 
moulding  the  advanced  cosmological  conceptions  of  the  Baby- 
lonians. 

In  Parnapishtim's  tale,  the  myth  is  given  a  more  popular 
form.  There  is  no  attempt  made  to  impart  a  scholastic  inter- 
pretation to  it.  In  keeping  with  what  we  have  seen  to  be  the 
general  character  of  the  Gilgamesh  epic,  the  episode  introduced 
at  this  point  embodies  popular  traditions  and,  on  the  whole, 
popular  conceptions.  The  spirit  of  the  whole  epic  is  the  same 
that  we  find  in  the  Thousand  and  One  Nights  or  in  the  Arabian 
romance  of  Antar. 

The  oriental  love  of  story-telling  has  produced  the  Gilgamesh 
epic  and,  like  a  true  story,  it  grows  in  length,  the  oftener  it  is  told. 
Gilgamesh  is  merely  a  peg  upon  which  various  current  tradi- 
tions and  myths  are  hung.  Hence  the  combination  of  Gilga- 
mesh's  adventures  with  those  of  Eabani.  and  hence  also  the 
association  of  Gilgamesh  with  Parnapishtim.  A  trace,  perhaps, 
of  scholastic  influence  may  be  seen  in  the  purport  of  Parna- 
pishtim's narrative  to  prove  the  hopelessness  of  man's  securing 
immortality  ;  and  yet,  while  the  theology  of  the  schools  may 
thus  have  had  some  share  in  giving  to  the  tale  of  Parnapish- 
tim its  present  shape,  the  problem  presented  by  Gilgamesh's 
adventures  is  a  popular  rather  than  a  scholastic  one.  Even  to 
the  primitive  mind,  for  whom  life  rather  than  death  constitutes 
the  great  mystery  to  be  solved,  the  question  would  suggest  itself 
whether  death  is  an  absolutely  necessary  phase  through  which 
man  must  pass.  The  sun,  moon,  and  stars  do  not  die,  the 
streams  have  perpetual  life  ;   and  since  all  manifestations  of  life 


THE    GILGAMESH   EPIC.  495 

were  looked  at  from  one  point  of  view,  why  should  not  man  also 
remain  alive  ?  Beyond  some  touches  in  the  narrative,  we  may, 
therefore,  regard  Parnapishtim's  story,  together  with  the  'les- 
son '  it  teaches,  as  an  interesting  trace  of  the  early  theology  as 
it  took  shape  in  the  popular  mind.  What  adds  interest  to  the 
story  that  Parnapishtim  tells,  is  its  close  resemblance  to  the 
Biblical  story  of  the  Deluge.  It  also  recalls  the  destruction 
of  Sodom,  and  we  shall  have  occasion1  to  show  the  significance 
of  these  points  of  contact.  Bearing  in  mind  the  independent 
character  of  the  Parnapishtim  episode,  and  the  motives  that 
led  to  its  being  incorporated  in  the  adventures  of  Gilgamesh, 
we  may  proceed  with  our  analysis  of  this  interesting  eleventh 
tablet.  Thanks  to  the  labors  of  Haupt,  the  numerous  fragments 
of  it  representing  several  copies,  have  been  pieced  together  so 
as  to  form  an  almost  complete  text."  In  reply  to  Gilgamesh's 
queries, 

Parnapishtim  spoke  to  Gilgamesh: 

"  I  will  tell  thee,  Gilgamesh,  the  marvellous  story, 

And  the  decision  of  the  gods  I  will  tell  thee. 

The  city  Shurippak,  a  city  which,  as  thou  knowest, 

Lies  on  the  Euphrates, 

That  city  was  corrupt,3  so  that  the  gods  thereof, 

Decided  to  bring  a  rainstorm  upon  it. 

All  of  the  great  gods,  Ami,  their  father, 

Their  counsellor,  the  warrior  Del, 

The  bearer  of  destruction  Ninib, 

Their  leader  En-rmgi, 

The  lord  of  unsearchable  wisdom,  Ea,  was  with  them, 

To  proclaim  their  resolve  to  the  reed-huts. 

Reed-hut,  reed-hut,  clay  structure,  clay  structure, 

Reed-hut,  hear !     Clay  structure,  give  ear  !  " 

The  ordinary  houses  of  Babylonia  were  constructed  of  reeds, 

1  See  below,  p.  507. 

2  The  restored  text  in  Haupt's  edition  of  the  Nimrodcpos,  pp.  134-149. 

3  So  Zimmern  ingeniously  suggests  la  bir,  "  not  pure,"  instead  of  the  rendering 
old '  as  hitherto  proposed. 


496  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 


while  the  temples  and  palaces  were  built  of  hard- baked  clay. 
'  Reed-hut  "  and  "  clay  structure,"  thus  embracing  the  archi- 
tecture of  the  country,  are  poetically  used  to  designate  the 
inhabitants  of  Shurippak.  The  address  to  the  huts  and  struc- 
tures has  been  appropriately  compared  by  Professor  Haupt  to 
the  opening  words  of  Isaiah's  prophecies.1 

Hear,  Heavens  !  and  give  ear,  Earth  ! 

Ea's  words  are  intended  as  a  warning  to  the  people  of  Shu- 
rippak. The  warning  comes  appropriately  from  Ea  as  the  god 
of  humanity,  who  according  to  some  traditions  is  also  the  crea- 
tor of  mankind,  and  who  is  the  teacher  and  protector  of  man- 
kind. Opposed  to  Ea  is  Bel,  the  old  Bel  of  Nippur,  who  is  rep- 
resented as  favoring  the  destruction  of  humanity.  The  story 
in  this  way  reflects  a  rivalry  between  the   Ea  and  Bel  cults. 

Of  Shurippak,  against  which  the  anger  of  the  gods  is  en- 
kindled, we  unfortunately  know  nothing,2  but  it  is  fair  to  assume 
that  there  was  an  ancient  city  of  that  name,  and  which  was  de- 
stroyed by  an  overflow  of  the  Euphrates  during  the  rainy  season. 
The  city  need  not  necessarily  have  been  one  of  much  importance. 
Its  sad  fate  would  naturally  have  impressed  itself  upon  the 
memory  of  the  people,  and  given  rise  to  legends  precisely  as  the 
disappearance  of  Sodom 3  or  of  the  destruction  of  the  tribes  of 
Ad  and  Thamud  gave  rjse  to  fantastic  stories  among  Hebrews 
and  Arabs  respectively.4 

Ea,  not  content  with  the  general  warning,  sends  a  special 
message  to  Parnapishtim,  one  of  the  inhabitants  of  Shurippak. 

()  man  of  Shurippak,  son  of  Kidin-Marduk  !5 

Erect  a  strut  tare,''  build  a  ship, 

1  Isaiah  i.  i. 

-  Sec  Jensen's  remarks,  Kosmologie,  p.  3S7.  There  is  no  reference  to  Shurippak 
in  IIR.  (.6,  1.  as  Haupt  lias  shown  (see  his  note  in  the  3d  edition  of  Schrader's  Keil- 
inschriften  und  das  Alte  Testament).  s  Gen.  xix. 

■*  Hughes,  Dictionary  of  Islam,  sub  "  Ad  "  and  "  Salih." 

■•  See  ahove,  p.  4S8,  note  2. 

6  Lit.,  '  construct  a  house ' ;  house  is  used  for  any  kind  of  structure  in  general. 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  497 

Abandon  your  goods,  look  after  the  souls,1 
Throw  aside  your  possessions,  and  save  your  life, 
Load  the  ship  with  all  kinds  of  living  things. 

The  god  then  tells  Parnapishtim  in  what  manner  to  build 
the  ship.  Its  dimensions  should  be  carefully  measured.  Its 
breadth  and  depth  should  be  equal,  and  when  it  is  finished, 
Parnapishtim  is  to  float  it.  The  warning  from  Ea  comes  to 
him  in  a  dream,  as  we  learn  from  a  subsequent  part  of  the 
story.  Parnapishtim  does  not  deem  it  necessary  to  dwell  upon 
this,  for  it  is  only  through  dreams  that  the  gods  communicate 
with  kings  and  heroes. 

Parnapishtim  declares  his  readiness  to  obey  the  orders  of 
Ea,  but  like  Moses  upon  receiving  the  command  of  Yahwe,  he 
asks  what  he  should  say  when  people  question  him. 

What  shall  I  answer  the  city,  the  people,  and  the  elders  ? 

Ea  replies : 

Thus  answer  and  speak  to  them: 

Bel  has  cast  me  out  in  his  hatred, 

So  that  I  can  no  longer  dwell  in  your  city. 

On  Bel's  territory  I  dare  no  longer  show  my  face; 

Therefore,  I  go  to  the  '  deep  '  to  dwell  with  Ea  my  lord. 

Bel's  domain  is  the  earth,  while  Ea  controls  the  watery  ele- 
ments. Bel's  hostility  to  mankind  is  limited  to  the  inhabitants 
of  the  dry  land.  The  moment  that  Parnapishtim  enters  Ea's 
domain  he  is  safe.  The  answer  thus  not  only  furnishes  the 
real  motive  for  the  building  of  the  ship,  but  further  illustrates 
the  purport  of  the  narrative  in  its  present  form.  It  is  a  glorifi- 
cation of  Ea  at  the  expense  of  Bel,  and  it  is  not  difficult  to 
detect  the  thought  underlying  the  story  that  the  evils  afflicting 
mankind  on  earth  are  due  to  the  hostility  of  the  'chief  demon,' - 
who  becomes  the  controller  of  the  earth  and  of  the  atmosphere 

1  I.e.,  let  your  property  go  and  save  your  family. 

2  See  above,  p.  53. 


498  BAB  YLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

immediately  above  the  earth.  Ea's  answer  is  not  intended  to 
be  equivoeal,  for  he  further  orders  Parnapishtim  to  announce 
to  his  fellow-citizens  the  coming  destruction. 

Over  you  a  rainstorm  will  come, 
Men,  birds,  and  beasts  will  perish. 

The  following  line  '  is  defective,  but  it  appears  to  except 
from  the  general  destruction  the  fish  as  the  inhabitants  of  the 
domain  controlled  by  Ea.  The  time  when  the  catastrophe  is 
to  take  place  is  vaguely  indicated. 

When  Shamash  will  bring  on  the  time,  then  the  lord  of  the  whirlstorm 
Will  cause  destruction  to  rain  upon  you  in  the  evening. 

The  '  lord  of  the  whirlstorm  '  is  Ramman,  and  the  reference 
to  this  deity  specifies  the  manner  in  which  the  catastrophe  will 
be  brought  about.  As  in  the  Biblical  story,  '  the  windows  of 
heaven  are  to  be  opened,'  the  rains  will  come  down,  driven  by 
the  winds  that  are  to  be  let  loose.  It  has  been  supposed  that 
because  the  ship  of  Parnapishtim  drifts  to  the  north  that  the 
storm  came  from  the  south."  No  stress,  however,  is  laid  upon 
the  question  of  direction  in  the  Babylonian  narrative.  The 
phenomenon  of  a  whirlstorm  with  rain  is  of  ordinary  occurrence  ; 
its  violence  alone  makes  it  an  exceptional  event,  but  —  be  it 
noted  —  not  a  miraculous  one.  Nor  are  we  justified  in  attrib- 
uting the  deluge  to  the  rush  of  waters  from  the  Persian  Gulf, 
for  this  sheet  of  water  is  particularly  sacred  to  Ea  as  the  begin- 
ning of  the  "great  deep."  It  would  be  an  insult  to  Ea's  dignity 
to  suppose  that  he  is  unable  to  govern  his  own  territory.  The 
catastrophe  comes  from  above,  from  Ramman  and  his  associates 
who  act  at  the  instigation  of  the  belligerent  Bel. 

Parnapishtim  begins  at  once  to  build  the  ship.  He  gathers 
his  material,  and  on  the  fifth  clay  is  ready  to  construct  the  hull. 
The  ship  resembles  the  ordinary  craft    still   used  on  the   Eu- 

■  L.45. 

2  Jensen,  Kostnologic,  p.  368  ;  Jeremias,  Izdubar-Nimrod ',  p.  37. 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  499 

phrates.  It  is  a  flat-bottomed  skiff  with  upturned  edges.  On 
this  shell  the  real  '  house  ' x  of  Parnapishtim  is  placed.  The 
structure  is  accurately  described.  Its  height  is  one  hundred 
and  twenty  cubits,  and  its  breadth  is  the  same,  in  accordance 
with  the  express  orders  given  by  Ea.  No  less  than  six  floors 
are  erected,  one  above  the  other. 

Then  I  built  six  stories,2 

So  that  the  whole  consisted  of  seven  apartments. 

The  interior  3  I  divided  into  nine  parts. 

The  structure  may  properly  be  called  a  '  house  boat,'  and  its 
elaborate  character  appears  from  the  fact  that  it  contains  no  less 
than  sixty-three  compartments.  Parnapishtim  carefully  pro- 
vides plugs  to  fill  out  all  crevices,  and  furthermore  smears  a 
large  quantity  of  bitumen  without  and  within. 

I  provided  a  pole,4  and  all  that  was  necessary, 
Six  sarh  of  bitumen6  I  smeared  on  the  outside,7 
Three  sar  of  pitch  [I  smeared]  on  the  inside. 

He  also  has  a  large  quantity  of  oil  placed  on  the  boat,  oxen, 
jars  filled  with  mead8  oil,  and  wine  for  a  festival,  which  he  insti- 
tutes at  the  completion  of  the  structure.  The  preparations  are 
on  a  large  scale,  as  for  the  great  New  Year's  Day  celebrated  in 
Babylonia.  The  ship  is  launched,  and,  if  Professor  Haupt  is 
correct  in  his  interpretation,  the  ship  took  water  to  the  extent 
of  two-thirds  of  its  height. 


'b1 


The  side  of  the  ship  dipped  two-thirds  into  water. 

1  See  above,  p.  496,  note  6. 

2  Or  decks  (so  Haupt). 

3  Of  each  story  or  deck. 

4  Poles  are  used  to  this  day  to  propel  the  crafts  on  the  Euphrates. 

5  The  largest  measure. 

6  The  same  word  (kitpru)  is  used  as  in  Gen.  vi.  14. 

"  Some  part  of  the  outside  of  the  structure  is  designated. 
8  Haupt  translates  "  Sesammeth." 


500  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Parnapishtim  now  proceeds  to  take  his  family  and  chattels 
on  board. 

All  that  I  had,  I  loaded  on  the  ship. 

With  all  the  silver  that  I  had,  I  loaded  it, 

With  all  the  gold  that  I  had,  I  loaded  it, 

With  living  creatures  of  all  kinds  I  loaded  it. 

I  brought  on  board  my  whole  family  and  household, 

Cattle  of  the  field,  beasts  of  the  field,  workmen,  — all  this  I  took  on  board. 

Parnapishtim  is  ready  to  enter  the  ship,  but  he  waits  until 
the  time  fixed  for  the  storm  arrives. 

When  the  time  came 

For  the  lord  of  the  whirlstorm  to  rain  down  destruction, 

I  gazed  at  the  earth, 

I  was  terrified  at  its  sight, 

I  entered  the  ship,  and  closed  the  door. 

To  the  captain  of  the  ship,  to  Puzur-Shadurabu,1  the  sailor, 

I  entrusted  the  structure  2  with  all  its  contents. 

The  description  of  the  storm  follows,  in  diction  at  once 
impressive  and  forcible. 

Upon  the  first  appearance  of  dawn, 

There  arose  from  the  horizon  dark  clouds, 

Within  which  Ramman  caused  his  thunder  to  resound. 

Nabu  and  Sharru3  marched  at  the  front, 

The  destroyers  passed  across  mountains  and  land, 

Dibbana4  lets  loose  the  .  .  .  .5 

Ninib  advances  in  furious  hostility. 

The  Anunnaki  raise  torches, 

Whose  sheen  illumines  the  universe, 

As  Ramman's  whirlwind  sweeps  the  heavens, 

And  all  light  is  changed  to  darkm  ss. 

1  "  Puzur"  signifies  '  hidden,' '  protected.'  "  Shadu  rabu,"  i.e., '  great  mountain.'  is 
a  title  of  Bel  and  of  other  gods  (see  above,  pp.  56  and  278).  Here,  probably, 
Shamash  is  meant.  -  Lit.,  'great  house'  or  'palace.' 

:;  /.<•.,  '  king,'  frequently  found  as  a  title  of  Marduk  in  astronomical  texts  (Jensen, 
Kosmologi ',  p.  145). 

4  The  god  of  war  and  pestilence. 

5  "  Tar-gul-le,"  some  mischievous  forces. 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  501 

The  destructive  elements,  thunder,  lightning,  storm,  rain, 
are  thus  let  loose.  The  dreadful  storm  lasts  for  seven  days. 
The  terror  of  men  and  gods  is  splendidly  portrayed. 

Brother  does  not  look  after  brother, 

Men  care  not  for  another.     In  the  heavens, 

Even  the  gods  are  terrified  at  the  storm. 

They  take  refuge  in  the  heaven  of  Anu.1 

The  gods  cowered  like  dogs  at  the  edge  of  the  heavens. 

With  this  description  the  climax  in  the  narrative  is  reached. 
The  reaction  begins.  Ishtar  is  the  first  to  bewail  the  destruc- 
tion that  has  been  brought  about,  and  her  example  is  followed 
by  others  of  the  gods. 

Ishtar  groans  like  a  woman  in  throes, 
The  lofty  goddess  cries  with  loud  voice, 
The  world  of  old  has  become  a  mass  of  clay.2 

Ishtar  appears  here  in  the  role  of  the  mother  of  mankind. 
She  feels  that  she  has  none  but  herself  to  blame  for  the  catas- 
trophe, for,  as  one  of  the  great  gods,  she  must  have  been  pres- 
ent at  the  council  when  the  storm  was  decided  on,  and  must 
have  countenanced  it.     She  therefore  reproaches  herself  : 

That  I  should  have  assented  3  to  this  evil  among  the  gods  ! 

That  when  I  assented  to  this  evil, 

I  was  for  the  destruction  of  my  own  creatures  ! 4 

What  I  created,  where  is  it  ? 

Lik«  so  many  fish,  it 5  fills  the  sea. 

From  the  words  of  Ishtar  it  would  appear  that  the  storm  had 
assumed  larger  dimensions  than  the  gods,  or  at  least  than 
some  of  them,  had  anticipated.  At  the  beginning  of  the  episode, 
Shurippak  alone  is  mentioned,  and  Ishtar  apparently  wishes  to 
say  that  when  she  agreed  to  the  bringing  on  of  the  storm,  she 

1  The  highest  part  of  heaven.  4  Lit.,  '  my  mankind.' 

2  I.e.,  has  been  destroyed.  5  I.e.,  Mankind. 

3  Lit., '  spoken '  or  '  ordered.' 


502  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

was  not  aware  that  she  was  decreeing  the  destruction  of  all 
mankind.  It  is  evident  that  two  distinct  traditions  have  been 
welded  together  in  the  present  form  of  the  Babylonian  docu- 
ment, one  recalling  the  destruction  of  a  single  city,  the  other 
embodying  in  mythological  form  the  destructive  rains  of  Baby- 
lonia that  were  wont  to  annually  flood  the  entire  country  before 
the  canal  system  was  perfected. 

Some  particularly  destructive  season  may  have  formed  an 
additional  factor  in  the  combination  of  the  traditions.  At  all 
events,  the  storm  appears  to  have  got  beyond  the  control  of  the 
gods,  and  none  but  Bel  approves  of  the  widespread  havoc  that 
has  been  wrought.  It  is  no  unusual  phenomenon  in  ancient 
religions  to  find  the  gods  powerless  to  control  occurrences  that 
they  themselves  produced.  The  Anunnaki  —  even  more  directly 
implicated  than  Ishtar  in  bringing  on  the  catastrophe  —  join  the 
goddess  in  her  lament  at  the  complete  destruction  wrought. 

The  gods,  together  with  the  Anunnaki,  wept  with  her. 

The  gods,  in  their  depression,  sat  down  to  weep, 

Pressed  their  lips  together,  were  overwhelmed  with  grief  (?). 

The  storm  could  no  longer  be  quieted. 

For  six  days  and  nights 

Wind,  rain-storm,  hurricane  swept  along; 

When  the  seventh  day  arrived,  the  storm  began  to  moderate, 

Which  had  waged  a  contest  like  a  great  host. 

The  sea  quieted  down,  wind  and  rain-storm  ceased. 

Parnapishtim  then  gazes  at  the  destruction. 

Bitterly  weeping  I  looked  at  the  sea, 

For  all  mankind  had  been  turned  to  clay.1 

In  place  of  dams,  everything  had  become  a  marsh. 

I  opened  a  hole  so  as  to  let  the  light  fall  upon  my  face, 

And  dumbfounded,  I  sat  down  and  wept. 

Tears  flowed  down  my  face. 

I  looked  in  all  directions,  —  naught  but  sea. 

1  From  which  they  were  made.     See  pp.  44S  and  511. 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  503 

But  soon  the  waters  began  to  diminish. 

After  twelve  double  hours  1  an  island  appeared, 
The  ship  approached  the  mountain  Nisir. 

The  name  given  to  the  first  promontory  to  appear  is  signifi- 
cant. Nisir  signifies  'protection'  or  'salvation.'  The  house- 
boat clings  to  this  spot. 

At  this  mountain,  the  mountain  Nisir,  the  boat  stuck  fast. 

For  six  days  the  boat  remains  in  the  same  position.  At  the 
beginning  of  the  seventh  day,  Parnapishtim  endeavors  to  ascer- 
tain whether  the  waters  have  abated  sufficiently  to  permit  him 
to  leave  the  boat. 

When  the  seventh  day  approached 

I  sent  forth  a  dove. 

The  dove  flew  about 

But,  finding  no  resting  place,  returned; 

Then  I  sent  forth  a  swallow. 

The  swallow  flew  about 

But,  finding  no  resting  place,  returned; 

Then  I  sent  forth  a  raven. 

The  raven  flew  off,  and,  seeing  that  the  waters  had  decreased, 

Cautiously  2  (?)  waded  in  the  mud,  but  did  not  return. 

Parnapishtim  is  satisfied,  leaves  the  ship,  and  brings  a  sac- 
rifice to  the  gods  on  the  top  of  the  mountain.  In  seven  large 
bowls  he  places  calamus,  cedarwood,  and  incense. 

The  gods  inhaled  the  odor, 

The  gods  inhaled  the  sweet  odor, 

The  gods  gathered  like  flies  around  the  sacrificer. 

.A  solemn  scene  ensues.  Ishtar,  the  '  mistress  of  the  gods,' 
swears  by  the  necklace  given  to  her  by  her  father,  Anu,  that 
she  will  never  forget  these  days. 

1  See  p.  4S2,  note  4. 

2  Haupt  and  Delitzsch  render  ikkal, '  ate,'  as  though  from  ak&lit,  but  this  is  hardly 
in  place.     I  take  the  stem  of  the  word  to  be  nakalu. 


504  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Let  the  gods  come  to  the  sacrifice,1 

But  Bel  must  not  come  to  the  sacrifice; 

Since,  without  consultation,-  he  caused  the  rain-storm, 

And  handed  over  my  creation  :i  to  destruction. 

Bel  thus  appears  to  be  the  one  who  alone  knew  of  the  extent 
which  the  destruction  was  destined  to  reach.  The  annihilation 
of  all  mankind  was  his  work,  undertaken  without  consulting  his 
associates.  The  latter  were  aware  only  of  the  intended  destruc- 
tion of  a  single  place, —  Shurippak. 

At  this  moment  Bel  approaches.  He  does  not  deny  his  deed, 
but  is  enraged  that  the  planned  destruction  should  not  have  been 
complete,  since  Parnapishtim  and  his  household  have  escaped. 

As  Bel  approached 

And  saw  the  ship,  he  was  enraged, 

Filled  with  anger  against  the  gods  —  the  Igigi. 

'  What  person  has  escaped  (?)  ? 

No  one  was  to  survive  the  destruction.' 

Ninib  reveals  the  fact  of  Ea's  interference: 

Ninib  opened  his  mouth  and  spoke,  spoke  to  the  belligerent  Bel  : 
"  Who  but  Ea  could  have  clone  this  ? 
For  is  it  not  Ea  who  knows  all  arts  ?  " 

Ea  appeals  to  Bel: 

Ea  opened  his  mouth  and  spoke,  spoke  to  the  belligerent  Bel : 

"  Thou  art  the  belligerent  leader  of  the  gods, 

But  why  didst  thou,  without  consultation,  bring  on  the  rainstorm  ? 

Punish  the  sinner  for  his  sins, 

Punish  the  evil-doer  for  his  evil  deeds, 

But  be  merciful  so  as  not  to  root  out  completely, 

Be  considerate  not  to  destroy  everything." 

The  terrors  inspired  by  the  deluge  are  well  portrayed  in  the 
continuation  of  Ea's  speech.  He  tells  Bel  that  he  should  have 
brought  on  anything- but  a  deluge. 

1  To  have  a  share  in  it. 

2  Jensen  and  lla'upt  translate  "inconsiderately,"  but  this  rendering  misses  the 
point.  ;i  Lit., '  my  humanity.' 


THE    GILGAMESII  EPIC  505 

Instead  of  bringing  on  a  deluge, 

Let  lions  come  and  diminish  mankind.1 

Instead  of  bringing  on  a  deluge, 

Let  tigers  come  and  diminish  mankind. 

Instead  of  bringing  on  a  deluge, 

Let  famine  come  and  smite  the  land. 

Instead  of  bringing  on  a  deluge, 

Let  pestilence  -  come  and  waste  the  land. 

Ea  then  confesses  that  through  his  instigation  Parnapishtim 
was  saved. 

While  I  did  not  reveal  the  decision  of  the  great  gods, 

I  sent  Adra-Khasis  3  a  dream  which  told  him  of  the  decision  of  the  gods. 

It  is  a  misconception  to  regard  this  answer  of  the  god  as 
equivocal.  Ea  means  to  say  that  he  did  not  interfere  with  the 
divine  decree.  He  simply  told  Parnapishtim  to  build  a  ship, 
leaving  to  the  latter  to  divine  the  reason.  Ea,  it  is  true,  tells 
Parnapishtim  of  Bel's  hatred,  but  he  does  not  reveal  the  secret 
of  the  gods.  After  Ea's  effective  speech  Bel  is  reconciled,  and 
the  scene  closes  dramatically,  as  follows: 

Bel  came  to  his  senses, 
Stepped  on  board  of  the  ship, 
Took  me  by  the  hand  and  lifted  me  up, 
Brought  up  my  wife,  and  caused  her  to  kneel  at  my  side, 
Turned  towards  us,  stepped  between  us,  and  blessed  us. 
'  Hitherto  Parnapishtim  was  human,4 

But  now  Parnapishtim  and  his  wife  shall  be  gods  like  us.5 
Parnapishtim  shall  dwell  in  the  distance,  at  the  confluence  of  the  streams.' 
Then  they  took  me  and  placed  me  in  the  distance,  at  the  confluence  of  the 
streams. 

1  Not  destroy  it  altogether.  2  Lit.,  '  the  god  Dibbarra.' 

3  I.e.,  the  '  very  clever '  or  '  very  pious,'  an  epithet  given  to  Parnapishtim.  The 
inverted  form,  Khasis-adra,  was  distorted  into  Xisusthros,  which  appears  in  the 
writers  dependent  upon  Berosus  as  the  name  of  the  hero  of  the  Babylonian  deluge. 
See,  e.g.,  Cory's  Ancient  Fragments,  pp.  52,  54,  60,  etc.  The  epithet  appears  also 
in  the  Legend  of  Etana  (pp.  523,  524),  where  it  is  applied  to  a  '  wise  '  young  eagle. 

4  /.*.,  mortal.  5  />•,  immortal.     Cf.  Gen.  iii.  22. 


506  BAB  1 Z OX/ AN- ASS YRIAN  RELIGION. 

The  streams  are,  according  to  Haupt,1  the  four  rivers  — 
Euphrates,  Tigris,  K.arun,  and  Kercha,  which  at  one  time 
emptied  their  waters  independently  into  the  Persian  Gulf. 
Parnapishtim*s  dwelling-place  is  identical  with  die  traditional 
Paradise  of  the  Babylonians  and  Hebrews. 

It  will  be  proper  before  leaving  the  subject,  to  dwell  briefly 
upon  the  points  of  contact  between  this  Babylonian  tale  and 
the  Biblical  narrative  of  the  Deluge.  The  source  of  the  tradi- 
tion must  be  sought  in  the  Euphrates  Valley.  The  ark  of 
Noah  can  only  be  understood  in  the  light  of  methods  of  navi- 
gation prevailing  in  Babylonia;  and  it  is  in  Babylonia, "and  not 
Palestine,  that  the  phenomenon  was  annually  seen  of  large  por- 
tions of  land  disappearing  from  view. 

The  Babylonian  tale  is  to  be  differentiated,  as  already  sug- 
gested, into  two  parts,  —  the  destruction  of  Shurippak  and  the 
annual  phenomenon  of  the  overflow  of  the  Euphrates.  The 
combination  of  these  two  elements  results  in  the  impression 
conveyed  by  Parnapishtim's  narrative  that  the  rain-storm  took 
on  larger  dimensions  than  was  originally  anticipated  by  the 
gods.  The  Biblical  narrative  is  based  upon  this  combination, 
but  discarding  those  portions  of  the  tale  which  are  of  purely 
local  interest  makes  the  story  of  a  deluge,  a  medium  for  illus- 
trating the  favor  shown  by  Yahwe  towards  the  righteous  man, 
as  represented  by  Noah.  The  Biblical  narrative  ends,  as  does 
the  Babylonian  counterpart,  with  the  assurance  that  a  deluge 
will  not  sweep  over  the  earth  again  ;  but  viewed  from  a  mono- 
theistic aspect,  this  promise  is  interpreted  as  signifying  the 
establishment  of  eternal  laws,  —  a  thought  that  is  wholly  foreign 
to  the  purpose  of  the  Babylonian  narrative. 

The  slight  variations  between  the  Biblical  and  Babylonian 
narratives,  and  upon  which  it  is  needless  to  dwell,  justify  the 
conclusion  that  the  Hebrew  story  is  not  directly  borrowed  from 

1  Wo  Lag  das  Paradies  (I  'eber  Land  and  Meer,  1894-95,  no.  15). 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  507 

the  Babylonian  version.1  The  divergences  are  just  of  the  char- 
acter that  will  arise  through  the  independent  development  and 
the  independent  interpretation  of  a  common  tradition.  The 
destruction  of  Shurippak  has  a  Biblical  parallel  in  the  destruc- 
tion of  Sodom  2  and  of  the  surrounding  district.  Sodom,  like 
Shurippak,  is  a  city  full  of  wickedness.  Lot  and  his  household 
are  saved  through  direct  intervention,  just  as  Parnapishtim  and 
his  family  escape  through  the  intervention  of  Ea.  Moreover, 
there  are  traces  in  the  Sodom  narrative  of  a  tradition  which 
once  gave  a  larger  character  to  it,  involving  the  destruction  of 
all  mankind,3  much  as  the  destruction  of  Shurippak  is  enlarged 
by  Babylonian  traditions  into  a  general  annihilation  of  mankind. 
It  is  to  be  noted,  too,  that  no  emphasis  is  laid  upon  Lot's  piety, 
and  in  this  respect,  as  in  others,  Parnapishtim  bears  more  re- 
semblance to  Lot  than  to  Noah. 

The  hostility  between  Bel  and  Ea,  which  we  have  seen  plays 
a  part  in  the  Babylonian  narrative,  belongs  to  the  larger  mytho- 
logical element  in  the  episode,  not  to  the  specific  Shurippak 
incident.  Bel,  as  the  god  whose  dominion  includes  the  atmo- 
sphere above  the  earth,  controls  the  '  upper  waters.'     At  his 

1  The  Hebrew  account,  it  must  be  remembered,  consists  of  two  narratives  dove- 
tailed into  one  another.  According  to  the  one  version —  the  Vahwistic  —  the  rain- 
storm continued  for  forty  days  and  forty  nights  ;  according  to  the  other  — the  priestly 
narrative —  one  hundred  and  fifty  days  pass  before  the  waters  began  to  diminish  and 
a  year  elapses  before  Noah  leaves  the  ark.  The  Vahwistic  narrative  lays  stress  upon 
the  ritualistic  distinction  of  clean  and  unclean  animals,  but  on  the  whole,  the  Vahwistic 
version  approaches  closer  to  the  Babylonian  tale.  Evidence  has  now  been  furnished 
that  among  the  Babylonians,  too,  more  than  one  version  of  the  tradition  existed. 
At  the  Eleventh  International  Congress  of  Orientalists  (September,  1S97),  Scheil 
presented  a  tablet,  dating  from  the  days  of  Hammurabi,  in  which  the  story  of  a 
deluge  is  narrated  in  a  manner  quite  different  from  the  Gilgamesh  epic.  The  tablet 
also  furnishes  the  phonetic  reading  pi-ir,  and  Scheil  is  of  the  opinion  that  these 
two  syllables  form  the  first  element  in  the  name  of  the  hero.  Unfortunately,  the 
tablet  is  badly  mutilated  at  this  point,  so  that  the  question  of  the  reading  is  not 
absolutely  certain.     See  p.  4S8,  note  2. 

2  Gen.  xix. 

3  Note  the  phrase  in  Gen.  xix.  31,  "there  is  no  one  on  earth,"  and  see  Pietschman, 
Geschichtc  der  Pk'dnizier,  p.  115. 


BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 


instigation  these  waters  descend  and  bring  destruction  with 
them.  But  Ea's  dominion  --  the  'deep'  and  the  streams  — 
are  beneficent  powers.  The  descent  of  the  upper  waters  is  in 
the  nature  of  an  attack  upon  Ea's  kingdom.  It  is  through  Ea 
that  the  mischiei   produced  by  Bel  is  again  made  good.     Such 

onception  falls  within  the  domain  of  popular  mythology. 
An  ancient  rivalry  between  Nippur,  the  seat  of  Bel  and  Eridu 
(or  some  other  seat  of  Ea  worship),  may  also  have  entered 
,  I  actor,  if  not  in  giving  rise  to  the  story,  at  least  in  main- 
taining it.  If  this  be  so,  the  story  would  belong  to  a  period 
earlier  than  I  [ammurabi,1  since  with  the  ascendancy  of  Babylon 
and  of  Marduk,  the  general  tendency  of  religious  thought  is 
towards  imbuing  the  gods  with  a  kindly  spirit  towards  one 
another,  joining  issues,  as  in  the  creation  epic,  for  the  glorifica- 
tion of  Marduk.  The  absence  of  Marduk  from  the  deluge  story 
is  another  indication  of  the  antiquity  of  the  tradition. 

Coming  back  now  to  the  epic,  Parnapishtim,  whose  sym- 
pathy has  been  aroused  by  the  sight  of  Gilgamesh,  makes  an 
attempt  to  heal  the  hero  of  his  illness. 

The  life  that  thou  seekest,  thou  wilt  obtain.     Now  sleep! 

Gilgamesh  falls  into  a  heavy  stupor,  and  continues  in  this 
state  lor  six  days  ami  seven  nights.  An  interesting  dialogue 
ensues  between  Parnapishtim  and  his  wife. 

Parnapishtim  says  to  his  wife: 

I  ook  at  the  man  whose  desire  is  life. 
Sleep  has  fallen  upon  him  like  a  storm." 
Sa\s  the  wife  to  Parnapishtim: 

"  Transform  him,  let  the  man  eat  of  the  charm-root,'2 
I  i  t  him  return,  restored  in  health,  on  the  road  that  he  came. 
Through  the  gate  let  him  pass  out,  hack  to  his  country." 

current  as  early  as  1 1  ammurabi  is  now  established  by  Sclieil's 

ige). 
v   which  means  a  charm  or  incantation  in  general. 


THE    GILGAMESII  EPIC.  509 

Parnapishtim  says  to  his  wife  : 
"  The  torture  of  the  man  pains  thee. 
Cook  the  food  l  for  him  and  place  it  at  his  head." 

It   is  interesting   to    note    that    the  woman    appears  as  the 
exorciser  of  the  disease.      The  wife  of  Parnapishtim  —  whose 
name  is  not  mentioned  as  little  as  is  the  wife  of  Noah  or  Lot  - 
proceeds  to  prepare  the  magic  food.     A  plant  of  some  kind  is 
taken  and  elaborately  treated. 

While  he2  slept  on  board  of  his  ship, 

She  cooked  the  food  and  placed  it  at  his  head. 

While  he  '2  slept  on  board  of  his  vessel, 

Firstly,  his  food  .  .  .  ; 

Secondly,  it  was  pealed ; 

Thirdly,  moistened; 

Fourthly,  his  bowl  (?)  was  cleansed  ; 

Fifthly,  Shiba  3  was  added ; 

Sixthly,  it  was  cooked; 

Seventhly,  of  a  sudden  the  man  was  transformed  and  ate  the  magic  food.4 

Gilgamesh  awakes  and  asks  what  has  been  done  to  him. 
Parnapishtim  tells  him.  But  Gilgamesh  is  not  completely 
healed.  His  body  is  still  covered  with  sores.  The  magic 
potion  must  be  followed  by  immersion  into  the  fountain  of  life. 
Parnapishtim  instructs  Ardi-Ea  to  convey  Gilgamesh  to  this 
fountain.     He  speaks  to  the  ferryman. 

The  man  whom  thou  hast  brought  is  covered  with  sores. 

The  eruption  on  his  skin  has  destroyed  the  beauty  of  his  body. 

Take  him,  O  Ardi-Ea,  to  the  place  of  purification, 

To  wash  his  sores  in  the  water,  that  he  may  become  white  as  snow. 

Let  the  ocean  carry  off  the  eruption  on  his  skin, 

That  his  body  may  become  pure.5 

Let  his  turban  be  renewed  and  the  garment  that  covers  his  nakedness. 

Ardi-Ea  carries  out  these  instructions  and  Gilgamesh  at  last 
is  healed.     The  hero  is  now  ready  to  return  to  his  land.     But 

1  Made  of  the  charm-root.  *  Tu. 

2  Gilgamesh.  5  Lit.,  '  good.' 

3  /.«.,  '  old  age,'  the  name  given  to  some  plant  of  magic  power. 


510  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

though  returning  in  restored  health,  he  is  not  proof  against 
death.  Parnapishtim,  at  the  suggestion  of  his  wife,  reveals  the 
rel  of  life  '  to  Gilgamesh  just  before  the  hitter's  departure. 
The  ship  is  brought  nearer  to  the  shore,  and  Parnapishtim  tells 
Gilgamesh  of  a  plant  that  wounds  as  a  thistle,  but  which  pos- 
sesses  wonderful  power.  Gilgamesh  departs  on  the  ship,  and 
with  the  help  of  Ardi-Ea  tinds  this  plant,  which  is  called  'the 
restoration  of  old  age  to  youth.'  It  is  a  long  journey  to  the 
place.  The  plant  grows  at  the  side  or  at  the  bottom  of  a  foun- 
tain. Gilgamesh  secures  it,  but  scarcely  have  his  hands  grasped 
the  plant  when  it  slips  out  of  his  hand  and  is  snatched  away 
by  a  demon  that  takes  on  the  form  of  a  serpent.  All  is  lost ! 
Gilgamesh  sits  down  and  weeps  bitter  tears.  He  pours  out  his 
woe  to  Ardi-Ea,  but  there  is  nothing  left  except  to  return  to 
I 'ink.  He  reaches  the  city  in  safety.  His  mission  —  the 
search  for  immortality-- has  failed.  Though  healed  from  his 
disease,  the  fate  of  mankind  —  old  age  and  death  —  is  in  store 
for  him.  With  the  return  to  Uruk  the  eleventh  tablet  ends.  It 
but  remains,  before  passing  on,  to  note  that  the  narrative  of  the 
deluge  in  this  tablet  is  connected  with  the  character  of  the 
eleventh  month,  which  is  called  the  'month  of  rain.'  We  may 
conclude  from  this  that  the  mythological  element  in  the  story  — 
the  annual  overflow -- predominates  the  local  incident  of  the 
destruction  of  Shurippak.  Gilgamesh,  we  must  bear  in  mind, 
has  nothing  to  do  with  either  the  local  tale  or  the  myth,  except 
to  -ive  to  both  an  interpretation  that  was  originally  foreign  to 
the  composite  narrative. 

In  the  twelfth  tablet  which  is  in  large  part  obscure  —  we 
find  Gilgamesh  wandering  from  one  temple  to  the  other,  from 
the  temple  of  Bel  to  that  of  Ea,  lamenting  for  Eabani,  and  ask- 
in-  again  ami  again,  what  has  become  of  his  companion.  What 
has  been  his  fate  since  he  was  taken  away  from  the  land  of  the 
The  hero,  now  convinced,  as  it  seems,  that  death  will 
1  ome  \<<  him,  and  reconciled  in   a   measure  to  his  fate,  seeks  to 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  511 

learn  another  secret,  —  the  secret  of  existence  after  death.  He 
appeals  to  the  gods  of  the  nether  world  to  grant  him  at  least  a 
sight  of  Eabani.     Nergal,  the  chief  of  this  pantheon,  consents. 

...  he  opened  the  earth, 
And  the  spirit 1  of  Eabani 
He  caused  to  rise  up  like  a  wind. 

Gilgamesh  puts  his  question  to  Eabani : 

Tell  me,  my  companion,  tell  me,  my  companion, 

The  nature  of  the  land  which  thou  hast  experienced,  oh  !  tell  me. 

Eabani  replies : 

I  cannot  tell  thee,  my  friend,  I  cannot  tell  thee! 

He  seems  to  feel  that  Gilgamesh  could  not  endure  the 
description.  The  life  after  death,  as  will  be  shown  in  a 
subsequent  chapter,  is  not  pictured  by  the  Babylonians  as 
joyous.  Eabani  reveals  glimpses  of  the  sad  conditions  that 
prevail  there.  It  is  the  domain  of  the  terrible  Allatu,  and  Etana 2 
is  named  among  those  who  dwell  in  this  region.  Eabani 
bewails  his  fate.3  He  curses  Ukhat,  whom,  together  with 
Sadu,  he  holds  responsible  for  having  brought  death  upon  him. 
In  Genesis,  it  will  be  recalled,  death  likewise  is  viewed  as  the 
consequence  of  Adam's  yielding  to  the  allurements  of  Eve. 
Special  significance,  too,  attaches  to  the  further  parallel  to  be 
drawn  between  Adam's  punishment  and  Eabani's  fate. 
Dust  thou  art,  and  unto  dust  shalt  thou  return 

applies  to  Eabani  as  well  as  to  Adam.  He  was  formed  of  clay,  as 
we  have  seen,4  and  when  he  dies  he  is  '  turned  to  clay.'  '  Still 
the  fortunes  awaiting  those  who  die  are  not  alike.     Those  who 

1  Utukku  —  the  name,  it  will  be  recalled,  given  to  a  class  of  demons.     See  p.  260. 

2  See  p.  51S. 

3  Haupt,  Beitrage  zur  Assyriologie,  i.  31S,  319,  has  made  it  plausible  that  pp.  16- 
19  of  his  edition  belong  to  the  twelfth  tablet  of  the  epic,  though  perhaps  to  a  differ- 
ent edition  of  the  epic,  as  Jeremias  suggests  (Izdubar-Nimrod,  p.  43). 

4  See  above,  p.  474.  5  Haupt's  edition,  pp.  67,  12. 


512  n.WYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

die  iii  battle  seem  to  enjoy  special  privileges,  provided,  however, 
they  are  properly  buried  and  there  is  some  one  to  make  them 
comfortable  in  their  last  hour  and  to  look  after  them  when  dead. 
Such  persons  arc  happy  in  comparison  with  the  fate  in  store  for 
those  who  arc  neglected  by  the  living.  The  one  who  is  properly 
cared  for,  who 

(  in  a  soft  couch  rests, 

Drinking  pure  water, 

Who  dies  in  battle,  as  you  and  I  have  seen,1 

His  fathei  and  mother  supporting  his  head, 

1 1  is  w  ife  2  ...  at  his  side,  — 

the  spirit  of  such  a  one  is  at  rest.  The  circumstances  attending 
death  presage  in  a  measure  the  individual's  life  after  death. 

But  In'  whose  corpse  remains  in  the  field, 

As  you  and  I  have  seen, 

His  spirit  :!  has  no  rest  in  the  earth. 

The  one  whose  spirit  is  not  cared  for  by  any  one, 

As  you  and  I  have  seen, 

He  is  (  onsumed  by  gnawing  hunger,  by  a  longing  for  food. 

What  is  left  on  the  street  he  is  obliged  to  eat.4 

To  be  left  unburied  was  the  greatest  misfortune  that  could 
happen  to  a  dead  person. 

With  this  sentiment  the  epic  closes.  Gilgamesh  must  rest 
content  with  the  unsatisfactory  consolation  that  Eabani  offers 
him.  Man  must  die,  and  Gilgamesh  cannot  escape  the  univer- 
sal fate.  Let  him  hope  for  and,  if  possible,  provide  for  proper 
burial  when  death  does  overtake  him.  He  will  then,  at  least, 
not  suffer  the  pangs  of  hunger  in  the  world  of  spirits  to  which 
he  musl 

The   twelfth   tablet   exhibits   somewhat   more   traces   of   the 

1  Lit.,  'thou  hast  seen  it.  I  n  it.' 

t  defective,    feremias  conjectures  "  kneeling." 
3  E&bnmu,  another  n  ime  Foi  a  <  lass  oi  demons.    See  p.  260. 
1  The  inslation  of  these  lines  we  owe  to  Haupt  [Beitr'dge  zitr  Assyriolo- 

70). 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  513 

theology  of  the  schools  than  the  others.  Eabani's  speech,  while 
conveying  sentiments  that  thoroughly  represent  the  popular 
beliefs  of  Babylonia,  is  couched  in  terms  that  give  to  the  ad- 
dress the  character  of  a  formal  declaration  of  doctrines.  The 
conjuring  up  of  the  spirit  of  Eabani  is  also  a  feature  that  appears 
to  be  due  to  theological  influences,  and  the  whole  episode  of 
Gilgamesh's  wandering  from  place  to  place  seeking  for  informa- 
tion appears  to  be  a  '  doublet '  suggested  by  the  hero's  wander- 
ings, as  narrated  in  the  ninth  and  tenth  tablets. 

The  problem  propounded  in  the  earlier  tablets — the  search 
for  immortality  —  is,  as  has  been  shown,  a  perfectly  natural  one 
and  of  popular  origin,  but  the  problem  with  which  Gilgamesh 
wrestles  in  the  twelfth  tablet,  —  the  secret  of  the  life  after  death, 
—  while  suggested  by  the  other,  belongs  rather  to  the  domain 
of  theological  and  mystic  speculation.  This  aspect  of  the 
twelfth  tablet  is  borne  out  also  by  the  fact  that  the  problem 
is  not  solved.  The  epic  ends  as  unsatisfactorily  as  the  Book 
of  Job  or  Ecclesiastes.  There  is  a  tone  of  despair  in  the 
final  speech  of  Eabani,  which  savors  of  the  schools  of  advanced 
thought  in  Babylonia.  For  the  problem  of  immortality,  a  defi- 
nite solution  at  least  is  offered.  Man  can  reach  old  age  ;  he 
may  be  snatched  for  a  time  from  the  grasp  of  death,  as  Gilga- 
mesh was  through  the  efforts  of  Parnapishtim,  but  he  only 
deludes  himself  by  indulging  in  hopes  of  immortal  life.  '  Man 
must  die  '  is  the  refrain  that  rings  in  our  ears.  The  plant  of 
'  eternal  youth  '  slips  out  of  one's  hand  at  the  very  moment 
that  one  believes  to  have  secured  it. 

The  Gilgamesh  epic,  as  we  have  it,  thus  turns  out  to  be  a  com- 
posite production.  Gilgamesh,  a  popular  hero  of  antiquity, 
becomes  a  medium  for  the  perpetuation  of  various  popular 
traditions  and  myths.  The  adventures  of  his  career  are  com- 
bined with  the  early  history  of  man.  Of  actual  deeds  performed 
by  Gilgamesh,  and  which  belong  to  Gilgamesh's  career  as  a  hero, 
warrior,  and  ruler,  we  have  only  four,  —  the  conquest  of  Erech, 


s1(  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

his  victory  over  KJiumbaba.  the  killing  of  the  divine  bull,  and 
the  strangling  of  the  lion.1  The  story  of  Eabani,  Ukhat,  and 
Sadu  is  independent  of  Gilgamesh's  career,  and  so  also  is  the 
story  of  his  wanderings  to  Mashu  and  his  encounter  with  Par- 
napishtim.  Gilgamesh  is  brought  into  association  with  Eabani 
by  what  may  be  called,  a  natural  process  of  assimilation.  The 
life  of  the  hero  is  placed  back  at  the  beginning  of  things,  and 
in  this  way  Gilgamesh  is  brought  into  direct  contact  with 
legends  of  man's  early  fortunes,  with  ancient  historical  reminis- 
i  ences,  as  well  as  with  nature-myths  that  symbolize  the  change 
of  seasons  and  the  annual  inundations. 

Popular  philosophy  also  enters  into  the  life  of  the  hero. 
Regarded  as  a  god  and  yet  of  human  origin,  Gilgamesh  becomes 
an  appropriate  illustration  for  determining  the  line  that  marks 
off  man's  career  from  the  indefinite  extension  of  activity  that 
is  a  trait  of  the  gods.  Gilgamesh  revolts  against  the  uni- 
versal law  of  decay  and  is  punished.  He  is  relieved  from 
suffering,  but  cannot  escape  the  doom  of  death.  The  sixth 
tablet  marks  an  important  division  in  the  epic.  The  Ishtar  and 
Sabitum  episodes  and  the  narrative  of  Parnapishtim  —  itself  a 
compound  of  two  independent  tales,  one  semi-historical,  the 
other  a  nature-myth  —  represent  accretions  that  may  refer  to  a 
time  when  Gilgamesh  had  become  little  more  than  a  name,  —  a 
type  of  mankind  in  general.  Finally,  scholastic  speculation 
takes  hold  of  Gilgamesh,  and  makes  him  the  medium  for  illus- 
trating another  and  more  advanced  problem  that  is  of  intense 
interest  to  mankind,  --the  secret  of  death.  Death  is  inevitable, 
but  what  does  death  mean?     The  problem  is  not  solved.     The 

1  The  reference  to  the  killing  of  a  panther  in  the  tenth  tablet  (Haupt,  p.  71,  6)  is 
too  1  to  be  taken  into  consideration.    Gilgamesh's  fight  with  a 'buffalo' (so 

Ward,  "  Babylonian  Gods  in   Babylonian   Art,"  Proc.  Amer.  Or.  Soc,  May,  1890, 
p.  >  cylinders.     No  doubt,  various  deeds  of  Gilgamesh  were 

nissing  portions  of  the  epic,  and  it  is  also  quite  likely  that  besides 
rs  wne  current  of  Gilgamesh  to  which  a  literary  form  was 
nevei  given. 


.  THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  515 

close  of  the  eleventh  tablet  suggests  that  Gilgamesh  will  die. 
The  twelfth  tablet  adds  nothing  to  the  situation  —  except  a 
moral.  Proper  burial  is  essential  to  the  comparative  well-being 
of  the  dead. 

The  fact  that  Gilgamesh  is  viewed  as  a  type  in  the  latter  half 
of  this  remarkable  specimen  of  Babylonian  literature  justifies  us 
in  speaking  of  it,  under  proper  qualification,  as  a  '  national  epic' 
But  it  must  be  remembered  that  Gilgamesh  himself  belongs  to 
a  section  of  Babylonia  only,  and  not  to  the  whole  of  it ;  and  it 
is  rather  curious  that  one,  of  whom  it  can  be  said  with  certainty 
that  he  is  not  even  a  native  of  Babylonia,  should  become  the 
personage  to  whom  popular  fancy  was  pleased  to  attach  tradi- 
tions and  myths  that  are  distinctively  Babylonian  in  character 
and  origin. 

The  story  of  Gilgamesh  was  carried  beyond  the  confines  of 
Babylonia.1  Gilgamesh,  to  be  sure,  is  not  identical  with  the 
Biblical  Nimrod,2  but  the  Gilgamesh  story  has  evidently  influ- 
enced the  description  given  in  the  tenth  chapter  of  Genesis  of 
Nimrod,  who  is  viewed  as  the  type  of  Babylonian  power  and 
of  the  extension  of  Babylonian  culture  to  the  north. 

The  Gilgamesh  epic  is  not  a  solar  myth,  as  was  once  sup- 
posed,3 nor  is  the  Biblical  story  of  Samson  a  pure  myth,  but 
Gilgamesh  becomes  a  solar  deity,  and  it  is  hardly  accidental  that 
Samson,  or  to  give  the  Hebrew  form  of  the  name,  Shimshon,  is 
a  variant  form  of  Shamash*  —  the  name  of  the  sun  in  Babylonian 
and  Hebrew.  The  Biblical  Samson  appears  to  be  modelled 
upon  the  character  of  Gilgamesh.  Both  are  heroes,  both  con- 
• 

1  The  Parnapishtim  episode  passed  on  to  the  Arabs,  where  the  hero  of  the  deluge 
appears  under  the  name  of  Khadir  —  a  corruption  of  Adra-Khasis.  See  Lidzbarski, 
"Werist  Chadir?"  Zeits.f.  Assyr.  vii.  109-112,  who  also  suggests  that  Ahasverus, 
'  the  Wandering  Jew,'  is  a  corruption  of  Adrakhasis. 

2  It  will  be  recalled  that  Nimrod  is  termed  a  '  mighty  hunter'  (said).  This  sug- 
gests a  comparison  with  Sadu, '  the  hunter,'  in  the  Gilgamesh  epic.    See  above,  p.  475. 

3  Originally  suggested  by  H.  C.  Rawlinson. 

4  The  ending  on  is  an  emphatic  affix  —  frequent  in  proper  names. 


516  BABYLONIAN-  A SS \ '/>'/.  / N  REL IGION. 

querors,  both  strangle  a  lion,  and  both  are  wooed  by  a  woman, 
the  one  by  Delila,  the  other  by  Ishtar,  and  both  through  a 
woman  arc  shorn  of  their  strength.  The  historical  traits  are 
ol  course  different.  As  for  the  relationships  of  the  Gilgamesh 
epic  to  the  Hercules  story,  the  authority  of  Wilamowitz- 
Mollendorf  '  is  against  an  oriental  origin  of  the  Greek  tale,  and 
yet  such  parallels  as  Hercules'  fight  with  a  lion,  his  conquest 
of  death,  his  journey  and  search  for  immortality  (which  in  con- 
tract to  Gilgamesh  he  secures),  certainly  point  to  an  influence 
exercised  by  the  oriental  tale  upon  the  Greek  story.  It  is  not 
surprising  that  the  elements  contributed  through  this  influence 
have  been  so  modified  in  the  process  of  adaptation  to  the 
purely  Greek  elements  of  the  Hercules  story,  and,  above  all,  to 
the  Greek  spirit,  as  to  obscure  their  eastern  origin.2  Most 
curious  as  illustrating  the  continued  popularity  of  the  Gilgamesh 
story  in  the  Orient  is  the  incorporation  of  portions  of  the  epic 
in  the  career  of  Alexander  the  Great."  In  Greek,  Syriac,  and 
Rabbinical  writings,  Alexander  is  depicted  as  wandering  through 
a  region  '  of  darkness  and  terror  in  search  of  the  '  water  of  life.' 
He  encounters  strange  beings,  reaches  the  sea,  but,  like  Gilga- 
mesh, fails  to  secure  immortality.  Such  were  the  profound 
changes  wrought  by  Alexander's  conquests  that  popular  fancy, 
guided  by  a  correct  instinct  of  appreciation  of  his  career,  con- 
verted the  historical  Alexander  into  a  legendary  hero  of  vast 
dimensions.5      The  process  that  produced  the  Gilgamesh  epic  is 

1  Euripidt  >'  Fferakles,  Einleitung. 

2  On  this  subject  see  the  Introduction  to  BerarcFs  De  /'online  des  eultes  Area- 
diens,    and    for    a    further   discussion   of    the    relationships   between    Izdubar   and 

rules,    see   Jereniias'    Izdubar-Nimrod,   pp.   70-73,  or    his   article   in    Koscher's 
Uhrliches  I    «,  „  der  Griechischen   und  Rbmischen   Mythologie,  ii.  S21-823. 
:;  Meissner,  Alexander  und  Gilgamos  (Leipzig,  [894),  pp.  13-17. 
4  '"  "  nd  other  versions,  the  mountain  Mus.h.n    Masis  is  mentioned, — 

that  is,  Mashu,  as  in  the  (  iilgamesh  epic.     See  p.  488. 

ally  Budge,  The  Lite  and  Exploits  of  Alexander  the  Great  (London, 
Introductl  Noldeke,    Beitrage    zu,     Geschichte  des   Alexander-Romans 

I1M-  ,89°)  and  I  I  n  Old  Hebrew  Romance  of  Alexander  (Journal  Royal 

;    I.9S). 


THE    GILGAMESH  EPIC.  517 

repeated,  only  on  a  larger  scale,  in  the  case  of  Alexander.  Not 
one  country,  but  the  entire  ancient  culture  world, -- Babylonia, 
Persia,  Egypt,  Arabia,  Judea,  and  Syria,  —  combine  to  form  the 
legendary  Alexander.  Each  country  contributes  its  share  of 
popular  legends,  myths,  and  traditions.  Babylonia  offers  as  her 
tribute  the  exploits  of  Gilgamesh,  which  it  transfers  in  part  to 
Alexander.  The  national  hero  becomes  the  type  of  the  'great 
man,'  and  as  with  new  conditions,  a  new  favorite,  representative 
of  the  new  era,  arises  to  take  the  place  of  an  older  one,  the  old 
is  made  to  survive  in  the  new.  Gilgamesh  lives  again  in  Alex- 
ander, just  as  traits  of  the  legendary  Alexander  pass  down  to 
subsequent  heroes. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 
MYTHS    AND    LEGENDS. 

Not  many  years  ago  the  impression  appeared  to  be  well 
founded  that  the  Semites  were  poor  in  the  production  of  myths 
and  legends  as  compared,  for  example,  to  the  Hindus  or 
Greeks.  The  religious  literature  of  the  Babylonians,  originat- 
ing undoubtedly  with  the  Semitic  inhabitants  of  the  Euphrates 
Valley,  reverses  the  impression.  The  'creation'  and  '  Gilga- 
mesh  '  epics  suffice,  not  merely  for  what  they  contain,  but  for 
what  they  imply,  to  accord  to  Babylonian  mythology  a  high 
rank ;  but  in  addition  to  these  epics  we  have  a  large  number  of 
tales  of  gods,  demi-gods,  demons,  and  spirits  that  illustrate  the 
capacity  of  the  Babylonians  for  the  production  of  myths. 
Indeed,  there  is  no  longer  any  reason  for  doubting  that  the 
Babylonian  mythology  exercised  considerable  influence  upon 
that  of  the  Greeks.  Further  discoveries  and  researches  may 
show  that  distant  India  also  felt  at  an  early  period  the  intel- 
lectual stimulus  emanating  from  the  Euphrates  Valley.  At  all 
events,  many  of  the  features  found  in  Babylonian  myths  and 
legends  bear  so  striking  a  resemblance  to  those  occurring  in 
lands  lying  to  the  east  and  west  of  Babylonia,  that  a  study  of 
Aryan  mythology  is  sadly  deficient  which  does  not  take  into 
account  the  material  furnished  by  cuneiform  literature.  How 
extensive  the  Babylonian  mythology  was  must  remain  for  the 
present  a  matter  of  conjecture,  but  it  is  easier  to  err  on  the 
side  of  underestimation  than  on  the  side  of  exaggeration.  If 
it  he  remembered  that  by  far  the  smaller  portion  only  of  Ashur- 
banabal's  library  has  been  recovered,  and  that  of  the  various 
literary  collections  that  were  gathered  in  the  religious  centers 


MYTHS  AND  LEGENDS.  519 

of  the  south,  scarcely  anything  has  as  yet  been  found,  it  is  cer- 
tainly remarkable  that  we  should  be  in  possession  of  an  elabor- 
ate tale  of  a  demi-god,  Etana,  of  an  extensive  legend  recounting 
the  deeds  of  the  war  and  plague-god  Dibbarra,  and  of  two  genuine 
storm  myths,  while  the  indications  in  Dr.  Bezold's  catalogue  of 
the  Kouyunjik  collection  justify  us  in  adding  to  the  list  several 
other  myths  and  legends,  among  the  still  unpublished  tablets 
of  the  British  Museum.1  These  myths  and  legends  have  a  two- 
fold value  for  us,  a  direct  value  because  of  the  popular  religious 
ideas  contained  in  them,  and  an  indirect  value  by  virtue  of  the 
interpretation  given  to  these  ideas  by  the  compilers.  In  the 
literary  form  that  the  popular  productions  received,  the  influ- 
ence of  those  who  guided  the  religious  thought  into  its  proper 
channels  is  to  be  clearly  seen. 

The  Etana  Legend. 

It  will  be  recalled  that  we  came  across  a  hero  Etana  in  the 
Gilgamesh  epic.2  The  name  of  the  hero  is  Semitic,  and  sig- 
nifies '  strong.' 3  An  identical  name  appears  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment,4 and  it  is  possible  that  the  Babylonian  Etana  represents, 
like  Gilgamesh,  some  ancient  historical  person  of  whom  a  dim 
tradition  has  survived  among  other  nations  besides  the  Baby- 
lonians.     The   deeds  recounted    of   him,   however,   place  the 

1  Some  of  these  were  already  indicated  (but  only  indicated)  by  George  Smith  in 
his  Chaldaeische  Genesis  (German  translation),  pp.  136-142.  It  is  the  merit  of  Dr. 
E.  J.  Harper  to  have  prepared  an  excellent  publication  of  the  material  contained  in 
Smith's  work,  pp.  103-120,  under  the  title  "  Die  Babylonischen  Legenden  von  Etana, 
Zu,  Adapa  und  Dibbarra"  (Delitzsch  and  Haupt's  Beitrage  zur  Assyriologie,  ii. 
390-521).  Additional  material  is  furnished  by  two  publications  of  mine:  {a)  a  mono- 
graph, "A  Fragment  of  the  Dibbarra  Epic"  (Boston,  1S91),  and  {b)  "A  New 
Fragment  of  the  Babylonian  Etana  Legend  "  (Delitzsch  and  Haupt's  Beitrage  zur 
Assyriologic,  111.363-381).  See  also  Friedrich  Jeremias  in  Chantepie  de  la  Saus- 
saye's  Lehrbuch  der  Religionsgeschichte  (2d  edition),  i.  21S-221. 

2  See  above,  p.  ;  1 1 . 

3  See  my  remarks  in  Delitzsch  and  Haupt's  Beitrage  zur  Assyriologie,  iii.  376. 

4  I  Kings,  v.  11. 


/,'.  / B  I  A  ONL  \N-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

hero  entirely  in  the  domain  of  myth.  His  patron  is  Shamash, 
the  sun-god,  and  in  popular  tradition  he  becomes  a  member  of 
the  pantheon  of  the  nether  world. 

In  the  portions  of  the  Etana  legend  preserved,1  two  episodes 
are  detailed  in  the  hero's  career,  one  regarding  the  birth  of  a 
son.  the  other  a  miraculous  journey.  The  former  episode  jus- 
tifies the  assumption  of  a  historical  starting-point  for  the  legend 
of  Etana.2  Among  many  nations  the  birth  of  a  hero  or  of  a 
hero's  son  is  pictured  as  taking  place  under  great  difficulties. 
Etana's  wife  is  in  distress  because  she  is  unable  to  bring  to  the 
world  a  child  which  she  has  conceived.  Etana  appeals  to 
Shamash.  Through  the  mediation  of  the  priests  he  has  offered 
sacrifices,  and  he  now  prays  to  Shamash  to  show  him  the 
"  plant  of  birth." 

The  oracles3  have  completed  my  sacrifices, 

They  have  completed  my  free-will  offerings  to  the  gods. 

O  Lord,  let  thy  mouth  command, 

And  give  me  the  plant  of  birth, 

Reveal  to  me  the  plant  of  birth, 

bring  forth  the  fruit,  grant  me  an  offspring. 

Of  Shamash's  reply  only  one  line  is  preserved  intact,  in  which 
he  tells  Etana  : 

Take  the  road,  ascend  the  mountain. 

It  is  presumably  upon  the  mountain  that  the  plant  grows 
whose  magical  power  will  insure  the  happy  delivery  of  the 
expected  offspring.  Harper  calls  attention  to  a  remarkable 
parallel  to  this  incident  which  is  found  in  the  Armenian  and 
Mandaean  legends  of  the  birth  of  Rustem,  the  son  of  Sal.  The 
latter's  wife  is  unable  to  deliver  her  child  because  of  its  size. 
Sal,  who  was  reared  by  an  eagle,  has  in  his  possession  a  pinion 

1  Harper  in  Delitzsch  and  Haupt's  Beitr'dge  zur  Assyriologie,  ii.  391-408. 
-  lb.  pp, 

■:  Lit.,  'the  inquirers,'  a  designation  of  the  priests  in  their  capacity  of  oracle- 
seekers. 


MYTHS  AND  LEGENDS.  521 

of  the   eagle,   by  means  of  which  he   can,  when   in   distress, 
invoke  the  presence  of  the  bird.     The  father  throws  the  pinion 
into   the  fire,   and  the   eagle   appears.     The   latter  gives  the 
mother   a  medicinal  potion,   and  the  child  is  cut   out  of  the 
womb.    Etana,  like  Rustem,  is  accompanied  by  an  eagle,  and  it 
would  appear  that  the  eagle  aids  Etana  in  obtaining  the  plant.1 
The  eagle,  in  many  mythologies,  is  a  symbol  of  the  sun,  and  it 
is  plausible  to  conclude  that  the  bird  is  sent  to  Etana  at  the 
instigation  of  Shamash.     Who  the  son  is  that  Etana  expects 
we  are  not  told,  and  naturally  from  a  single  episode  like  this 
—  and  one  so  fragmentary  preserved  —  no  safe  conclusions 
may  be  drawn.     But  the  epic  (if  we  may  apply  this  term)  must 
have    recounted    some    achievements    of    Etana,    and    as    the 
'  strong: '  one,  his  deeds  must  have  borne  some  resemblance  to 
those  of  Gilgamesh.     The  birth  of  the  son,  it  is  furthermore 
fair  to  presume,  took  place  towards  the  end  of  Etana's  career, 
when  his  own  life  was  drawing  to  a  close.     If  a  fragment 2  of 
the  tale  were  only  better  preserved,  we  would  have  an  episode 
of  Etana's  earlier  career.     But  such  is  the  condition  of  this 
fragment  that,  at  the  most,  it  can  be  said  that  Etana  is  engaged 
in  some  conflict  against  a  city,  in  which  Ishtar,  Bel,  the  Anun- 
naki,  the  Igigi,  and  some  minor  gods,  as  En-ninna,  Sibittum, 
are  involved.    The  Etana  series,  as  we  learn  from  the  colophon 
to  this  fragment,  was  known  by  a  designation  in  which  a  city  3 
occurs,  and  it  may  be  that  this  is  the  city  against  which  Etana, 
aided  by  the  gods,  proceeds.     Leaving  this  aside,  it  is  fortu- 
nate that  we  have  at  least  another  episode  in  Etana's  career 
which  enables  us  to  establish  the  connecting  link  between  the 
hero  as  an  historical  personage  and  as  a  god  or  demi-god.     As 
Gilgamesh  offers  an  insult  to  Ishtar,  so  Etana  encounters  the 
ill-will  of  the  great  goddess,  though  through  no  direct  offense. 

1  The  matter  is  not  certain  because  of  the  sad  condition  of  the  fragments. 

2  K.  2606,  Harper,  ib.  pp.  399,  400. 

3  Only  a  part  of  the  name,  /-si,  is  preserved. 


522  BABYLO.XI.W    ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

The  eagle  tempts  Etana  to  mount  with  him  into  the  upper 
regions.  Etana  is  represented  as  giving,  in  part,  an  account  of 
this  adventure,  in  the  first  person.  The  gates  of  the  upper 
regions  are  opened,  and  Etana  is  terrified  at  the  majestic  sight 
which  greets  him.  He  sees  a  throne,  and  throws  himself  on 
his  countenance  in  terror.  The  gates  are  significantly  desig- 
nated as  the  gate  of  Ami,  Rel,  and  Ea,  and  the  gate  of  Sin, 
Shamash,  Ramman,  and  Ishtar.  The  introduction  of  the  two 
i  lasses  "l  the  theological  triads1  reveals  the  influence  of  a  scho- 
lastic elaboration  of  some  popular  myth.  The  eagle  reassures 
Etana,  and  addresses  him  as  follows  : 

My  friend  lift  up  (?)  [thy  countenance], 

('our:  and  let  nie  carry  thee  to  the  heaven  [of  Aim]. 

<  in  my  breast  place  thy  breast. 

On  my  pinion  place  thy  palms, 

( >n  my  side  place  thy  side. 

Etana  obeys,  and  thus,  securely  attached  to  the  eagle,  begins 
the  daring  journey.  They  fly  for  the  space  of  a  double  hour,2 
when 

The  eagle  addresses  Etana: 

Look,  my  friend,  how  the  earth  appears; 

1  ""I-  at  the  sea  and  at  its  side,  the  house  of  wisdom;3 

The  earth  appears  as  a  mountain,  the  sea  has  become  a  pool  (?). 

A  se<  ond  double  hour  he  (i.e..  the  eagle)  carried  him  on  high. 

The  eagle  spoke  to  Etana  : 

Look,  my  friend,  how  the  earth  appears; 

I  he  sea  is  a  mere  belt  (?)  around  the  earth. 

A  third  double  hour  he  carried  him  on  high. 

Thi  poke  to  Etana  : 

l    ok,  my  friend,  how  the  earth  appears; 

The  sea  is  a  mere  gardener's  ditch.4 

pp.  ]    : 
-  A--.,  an  army's  march  of  two  hours. 
8   I  he  dwelling  of  Ea.     See  Meissner,  .  \lexander  and  Gilgamos,  p.  17. 

1  Ac.  still  smaller. 


MYTHS  AND  LEGENDS.  523 

In  this  way  they  reach  the  gate  of  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea  in 
safety,  where  they  take  a  rest.  The  eagle  is  not  yet  satisfied, 
and  urges  Etana  to  follow  him  to  the  domain  of  Ishtar. 

Come,  my  friend  [let  me  carry  thee  to  Ishtar], 

With  Ishtar,  the  mistress  [of  the  gods,  thou  shalt  dwell], 

In  the  glory  of  Ishtar,  the  mistress  of  the  gods,  [thou  shalt  sit  ?]. 

On  my  side  place  thy  side, 

On  my  pinion  place  thy  palms. 

The  gods,  it  will  be  seen,  dwell  on  high  in  accordance  with 
the  view  developed  by  astronomical  speculations.1  Anu,  Bel, 
and  Ea  are  here  evidently  identified  with  the  fixed  stars  bear- 
ing their  names,2  while  under  Ishtar  the  planet  Ishtar- Venus  is 
meant.  Etana  yields  to  the  eagle's  suggestion.  They  mount 
still  higher.  Earth  and  ocean  grow  still  smaller,  the  former 
appearing  only  as  large  as  fa  garden  bed,'  the  latter  like  'a 
courtyard.'  For  three  double  hours  they  fly.  Etana  appears 
to  warn  the  eagle  to  desist  from  his  rash  intention,  but  the 
warning  comes  too  late.  Etana  and  the  eagle  are  thrown 
clown  from  the  lofty  regions.  With  lightning  speed  the  descent 
takes  place,  until  the  two  reach  the  ground.  The  further  course 
of  the  narrative  is  obscure.  Was  Etana  punished  by  being 
sent  to  the  nether  world,  where  we  find  him  in  the  Gilgamesh 
epic  ?3  There  is  a  reference,  unfortunately  quite  obscure,  to  the 
death  of  Etana,  and  perhaps  to  his  shade,4  in  a  portion  of  the 
tablet.  One  certainly  expects  both  Etana  and  the  eagle  to  be 
punished  for  their  rash  act,  but  until  we  can  determine  with 
certainty  what  became  of  both,  and  with  what  purport  the  tale 
is  introduced  into  the  career  of  Etana,  the  question  must  be 
left  open,  as  also  the  possibility  of  a  connection  between  this 
flight  of  Etana  and  the  similar  Greek  myth  of  Ganymede. 
The  introduction  of  the  eagle  points  clearly  to  the  mythologi- 
cal character  of  the  tale,  but  flights  of  eagles  occur  so  frequently 

1  See  above,  p.  45S.  3  See  p.  511. 

2  See  p.  460.  4  Harper,  ib.  p.  404,  note. 


524  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

in  the  myths  and  legends  of  various  nations  that  no  great  stress 
is  to  be  laid  upon  further  parallels  that  might  be  adduced.1 
The  story  found  in  Aelian  and  which  has  already  been  referred 
to2  alone  calls  for  mention  here.  According  to  this  story,  Gilga- 
mesh,  whose  birth  is  feared  by  his  cruel  grandfather  Sokkaros, 
king  of  babylonia,  is  thrown  from  the  tower  where  his  mother 
was  imprisoned  and  in  which  he  was  born,  but  in  falling  is 
i  aught  by  an  eagle  and  taken  to  a  gardener  who  rears  the 
child.  The  eagle  being  the  associate  of  Etana,  the  suspicion 
is  justified  that  the  child  thus  miraculously  saved  is  in  reality 
Etana  and  not  Gilgamesh.  At  all  events,  there  must  be  some 
connection  between  the  story  of  Aelian  and  the  Babylonian 
legend  under  consideration.  The  fate  of  the  eagle  is  recounted 
in  another  tablet  of  the  Etana  series,3  which  again  furnishes  an 
episode  paralleled  in  the  mythologies  of  other  nations. 

The  eagle  has  lost  favor  with  Shamash.  Enmity  has  arisen 
between  the  eagle  and  the  serpent,  and,  curiously  enough,  the 
latter  stands  under  the  protection  of  the  sun-god.  What  the 
cause  of  the  enmity  between  eagle  and  serpent  was,  may  have 
been  recounted  in  a  missing  portion  of  the  tablet.  The  eagle 
forms  a  plan  of  destroying  the  serpent's  brood.  He  is  warned 
against  this  act  by  a  young  eagle,  who  is  designated  as  a  'very 
clever  young  one.' 

Do  nut  eat,  <  >  my  father,  the  net  of  Shamash  is  laid  (?); 
The  trap,  the  ban  of  Shamash,  will  fall  upon  thee  and  catch  thee. 
Who    transgresses    the    law    of    Shamash,  from  him   Shamash  will  exacl 
revenge. 

But  the  eagle,  we  are  told,  paid  no  heed  to  the  warning. 

I  te  des<  ended  and  ate  of  the  young  of  the  serpent. 

The  serpenl  appeals  to  Shamash.  He  tells  the  sun-god  of 
the  cruel  deed  of  the  eagle  : 

1  Sec  Harper,  ib.  pp.  406,  407. 

i.bove,  p.  :!  Harper,  pp.  302-394. 


MYTHS  AND   LEGENDS.  525 

See,  O  Shamash,  the  evil  that  he  has  done  to  me. 

Help  (?),  O  Shamash,  thy  net  is  the  broad  earth. 

Thy  trap  is  the  distant  heavens. 

Who  can  escape  thy  net  ? 1 

Zu,2  the  worker  of  evil,  the  source  of  evil  [did  not  escape?3]. 

Shamash  responds  to  the  appeal  : 

Upon  his  hearing  the  lament  of  the  serpent, 

Shamash  opened  his  mouth  and  spoke  to  the  serpent : 

Go  and  ascend  the  mountain; 

The  carcass  of  a  wild  ox  make  thy  hiding-place. 

Open  him,  tear  open  his  belly. 

Make  a  dwelling  place  [of  his  belly]. 

All  the  birds  of  heaven  will  come  down; 

The  eagle  with  them  will  come  down. 

Upon  penetrating  to  the  meat  he  will  hastily  proceed, 

Making  for  the  hidden  parts.4 

As  soon  as  he  has  reached  the  inside,5  seize  him  by  his  wing, 

Tear  out  his  wing,  his  feather  (?),  his  pinion, 

Tear  him  to  pieces,  and  throw  him  into  a  corner, 

To  die  a  death  of  hunger  and  thirst. 

This  devilish  plan  is  successfully  carried  out.  With  consid- 
erable skill  the  narrative  describes  how  the  eagle,  suspecting 
some  mischief,  did  not  join  the  other  birds,  but  when  he  saw 
that  they  escaped  without  harm  felt  reassured.  He  tells  his 
brood  : 

Come,  let  us  go  and  let  us  also  pounce  down  upon  the  carcass  of  the  wild 
ox  and  eat,  we  too. 

The   eagle   is    again  warned  by  his  "very  clever"  offspring. 
The  rest  of  his  brood  join  in  the  appeal,  but 

He  did  not  hearken  to  them,  and  obeyed  not  the  advice  of  his  brood. 
He  swooped  down  and  stood  upon  the  wild  ox. 

1  I.e.,  one  cannot  escape  from  Shamash,  since  he  traverses  all  space. 

2  A  personification  of  the  storm.  See  below,  pp.  537  seq.  The  line  is  very  obscure 
owing  to  the  break  in  the  tablet.  3  So  Harper,  but  see  pp.  541,  542. 

4  I.e.,  he  will  dig  his  beak  into  the  juicy  part  of  the  meat. 

5  Of  the  carcass. 


526  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

Still,  he  is  not  entirely  free  from  suspicion,  and  the  narrative 
continues  : 

The  eagle  inspected  the  carcass,  looking  carefully  to  the  front  and  behind 

him. 
He  again  inspei  ted   the  carcass,  looking  carefully  to  the  front  and  behind 

him. 

Detecting  nothing  to  justify  his  suspicions,  he  digs  his  beak 
into  the  carcass,  but  scarcely  has  he  done  so  when  the  serpent 
seizes  hold  of  him.  The  eagle  cries  for  mercy,  and  promises 
the  serpent  a  present  of  whatever  he  desires.  The  serpent  is 
relentless.  To  release  the  eagle  would  be  to  play  false  to 
Shamash. 

\{  I  release  thee   .  .   . 

Thy  punishment  will  be  transferred  to  me. 

Thus  the  serpent  justifies  what  he  is  about  to  do.  In  accord- 
ance with  the  instructions  of  the  sun-god,  the  eagle  is  stripped 
of  his  wings  and  feathers,  and  left  to  die  a  miserable  death. 
In  its  present  form  this  tale  of  the  eagle  and  serpent  forms 
part  of  the  Etana  story.1  Jeremias  is  right  in  questioning 
whether  it  originally  had  anything  to  do  with  Etana.2  Two 
distinct  stories  have  been  combined,  much  as  in  the  Gilgamesh 
epic  several  tales  have  been  thrown  together.  The  association 
of  Etana  with  the  eagle  suggests  the  introduction  of  the  episode 
of  the  eagle's  discomfiture.  If  one  may  judge  of  the  two  epi- 
sodes related  of  Etana,  he  is  not  a  personage  regarded  with 
favor  by  the  compilers.  In  both  episodes  we  find  him  in  dis- 
tress.  His  flight  with  the  eagle  is  regarded  as  a  defiance  of 
the  gods,  though  more  blame  attaches  to  the  eagle  than  to  him. 
Shamash  can  hardly  have  regarded  with  favor  the  ambition  of 
a  human  being  to  mount  to  the  dwelling  of  the  gods.  Gilga- 
mesh makes  no  such  attempt,  and  Parnapishtim  is  not  carried 

hown  by  the  colophon  <>f  K.  2606,  and  also  by  the  fact  that  K.  1547,  which 
contains  on  the  obverse  the  tale,  contains  on  the  reverse  Etana's  prayer  to  Shamash. 
'  Di   la  Saussaye's  Lehrbuch  de%  eschiclde  (2d  edition),  i.  218. 


MYTHS  AND   LEGENDS.  527 

on  high,  but  to  "  the  confluence  of  the  streams."     Gilgamesh, 
it  will  also  be  recalled,  is  unable  to  pass  to  the  nether  world 
where  Eabani  is  placed,  and  in  the  following  chapter  we  will 
come  across  a  tale  intended  to  illustrate  the  impossibility  of 
any  one  ever  returning  from  the  hollow  under  the  earth  where 
the  dead  dwell.       The  story  of    Etana  appears,  therefore,  to 
emphasize   the    equal    impossibility  for  any  mortal  to  ascend 
to  the  dwelling  of  the  gods.     Etana  is  deified,  but  he  belongs 
permanently  to   the   region  where   all   mortals  go  after  their 
career  on  earth  is  ended,  —  the  nether  world.     One  gains  the 
impression,    therefore,   that   Etana  is  a  hero  of  antiquity   who 
is  not  approved  of  by  the   Babylonian  priests.      Similarly,  the 
conflict  between  the  eagle  and  the  serpent  suggests  an  oppo- 
sition to  the  view  which  makes  the  eagle  the  symbol  and  mes- 
senger of  Shamash.     The  eagle  recalls  the  winged  disc,  the 
symbol  of  Ashur,1  and  the  eagle   occurs    also   as   a   standard 
among  the  Hittites,2  with  whom,  as  we  know,  the   Babylonians 
came  into  contact.      The  story  of  Shamash,  himself,  laying  the 
trap  for  the  eagle  looks  like  a  myth  produced  with  some  specific 
intent,   an  illustration  of    legitimate  sun-worship  against  rival 
cults.     As  a  matter  of  course,  in  the  case  of  such  a  myth,  it  is 
difficult  to  say  where  its  popular  character  ends  and  the  specu- 
lative  or  scholastic  theory  begins.      But    whatever   may  have 
been  the  original  purport  of  the  tale,  for  our  purposes  its  sig- 
nificance consists  in  the  view  unfolded  of  Shamash  as  the  one 
who    wreaks  vengeance   on   the   evil-doer.       STTamash  appears 
in  the  episode  in  the  role  of  the  just  judge  that  characterizes 
him    in  the    hymns  and  incantations.      Etana's  reliance  upon 
the  eagle  leads  to  disgrace  and  defeat.      In  a  representation  of 
the  hero's  flight  on  a  seal  cylinder,'5  the  disapproval  of  the  act 

1  See  above,  p.  195. 

2  Perrot  and  Chipiez,  History  of  Art  in  Sardinia,  Phoenicia,  Jttdea,  Syria,  am! 

Asia  Minor,  ii.  176. 

3  Pinches,  Babylonian  and  Assyrian  Cylinders,  etc.,  of  Sir  Henry  Peak;  no.  18. 

Cf.  Harper,  ib.  p.  408. 


528  BAB  ) 7  < K\  IAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

is  indicated  by  the  addition  of  two  dogs  in  a  crouching  position, 
their  gaze  directed  towards  the  bird.  The  dogs  are  a  symbol 
of  the  solar-god  Marduk.1 


The  Legend  of  Dibbarra. 

Of  more  direct  religious  import  is  a  story  recounted  in  a 
series  comprising  five  tablets  of  the  deeds  of  the  war  and 
plague-god  whose  name  is  provisionally  read  Dibbarra.2  He  is 
a  solar  deity  identified  in  the  theological  system  of  the  Baby- 
lonians with  Nergal,  but  originally  distinct  and  in  all  proba- 
bility one  of  the  numerous  local  solar  deities  of  Babylonia  like 
Nin-girsu  and  Nin-gishzida,  Ishum  and  others,  whose  roles  are 
absorbed  by  one  or  the  other  of  the  four  great  solar  deities,- — 
Shamash,  Marduk,  Ninib,  and  Nergal.  Nergal  representing 
the  sun  of  midday  and  of  the  summer  solstice,  which  brings  in 
its  wake  destruction  of  various  kinds,  it  was  appropriate  that 
a  god  who  came  to  be  specifically  viewed  as  the  god  who 
causes  disease  should  be  regarded  as  an  aspect  of  the 
terrible  Nergal.  In  the  legend  that  we  are  about  to  consider, 
Dibbarra  appears  as  the  god  of  war.  He  is  designated  as  the 
'  warrior.'  The  name  of  the  god  is  written  ideographically  with 
a  sign  that  has  the  meaning  of  '  servant'  and  'man.'  To  this 
sign  the  phonetic  complement  ra  is  added.  In  view  of  a  pas- 
sage in  a  lexicographical  tablet,  according  to  which  the  name 
of  the  god  is  designated  as  the  equivalent  of  the  god  Gir-ra, 
fensen  concluded  that  the  name  was  to  be  read  Gira,  and 
Delitzsch8  is  inclined  to  follow  him.  A  difficulty,  however, 
arises  through  the  circumstance  that  the  element  Gir  in  the 
name  Gir-ra  is  itself  an  ideograph.  In  any  case,  the  designation 
of  the  god  as  a  '  servant '  shows  that  he  is  described  here  by  an 

1  A  lexicographical  tablet,  IIR.  56,  col.  iii.  22-25,  mentions  four  dogs  of  Marduk. 
-  See  p,  2^2. 

1 1  u  per,  <•'/'.  p.  426. 


MYTHS  AND   LEGENDS.  529 

epithet,1  and  not  by  his  real  name,  which  is  to  be  sought  rather 
in  the  sense  of  '  strong,'  that  is  one  of  the  meanings  of  the  ideo- 
graph^//-. The  epithet  'servant'  belongs  to  the  period  when  the 
god  took  his  place  in  the  theological  system  as  one  of  the  attend- 
ants of  the  great  Nergal,  just  as  the  plague-god  is  himself  accom- 
panied by  a  god  Ishum,  who  acts  as  a  kind  of  messenger  or 
attendant  to  him.  It  should  be  added  that  what  little  evidence 
there  was  for  the  conventional  reading  Dibbarra2  has  now  been 
dispelled,  so  that  but  for  the  desire  to  avoid  useless  additions 
to  the  nomenclature  of  the  Babylonian  deities,  the  form  Gir-ra 
would  have  been  introduced  here,  as  for  the  present  preferable. 

Where  the  cult  of  Dibbarra  centered  we  do  not  know,  but 
that  he  presided  over  a  district  that  must  have  played  a  promi- 
nent part  at  some  period  of  Babylonian  history  is  shown  by 
the  elaborate  legend  of  his  deeds  for  which,  as  in  the  case  of 
Gilgamesh  and  Etana,  we  are  justified  in  assuming  an  historical 
background.  In  fact,  the  legend  of  Dibbarra  is  naught  but  a 
poetic  and  semi-mythical  disguise  for  severe  conflicts  waged 
against  certain  Babylonian  cities  by  some  rival  power  that 
had  its  seat  likewise  in  the  Euphrates  Valley. 

Of  the  five  tablets,  but  four  fragments  have  as  yet  been 
found  in  such  a  condition  as  to  be  utilized.  The  longest  of 
these  contains  an  address  to  Dibbarra  by  his  faithful  attendant 
Ishum,  in  which  the  power  of  the  war-god  is  praised  and  some 
of  his  deeds  recounted. 

[The  sons  of]  Babylon  were  (as)  birds 

And  thou  their  falconer. 

In  a  net  thou  didst  catch  them,  enclose  them,  and  destroy  them, 

O  !  Warrior  Dibbara, 

Leaving  the  city,3  thou  didst  pass  to  the  outside, 

Taking  on  the  form  of  a  lion,  thou  didst  enter  the  palace. 

The  people  saw  thee  and  drew  (?)  their  weapons. 

1  The  ra  is  either  a  phonetic  complement  to  the  ideograph  or  is  perhaps  added  to 
suggest  to  the  reader  the  identification  with  Gir-ra.  3  Babylon. 

2  Namely,  the  connection  with  Hebrew  deber,  '  pestilence.'     Cf.  Harper,  ib.  p.  426. 


530  BABYLOA  TAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

The  reference  in  these  lines  is  to  an  attack  upon  the  city  of 
Babylon.  The  war-god  is  pictured  as  striking  out  in  all  direc- 
tions, imprisoning  the  inhabitants  of  Babylon  within  the  city 
walls,  working  havoc  outside  of  the  city,  and  not  stopping  short 
at  entering  the  palace.  The  metaphor  of  the  war-god  taking 
on  the  form  of  a  lion  confirms  the  identification  of  Dibbarra 
with  Nergal,  who  is  generally  pictured  as  a  lion. 

In  the  following  lines  the  enemy  who  makes  this  attack  on 
Ilabylon  is  introduced.  He  is  designated  as  a  'governor,' 
and  Dibbarra  is  represented  as  giving  him  certain  instructions 
to  carry  out.  The  title  '  governor '  given  to  this  enemy  may 
be  taken  as  an  indication  that  the  epic  deals  with  the  rivalry 
existing  among  the  states  of  Babylonia,  each  represented  by  its 
capitol.      Ishum  continues  his  address  to  Dibbarra  : 

The  heart  of  the  governor,  intent  upon  taking  vengeance  on  Babylon,  was 

enraged, 
Foi  i  apturing  the  possessions  of  the  enemy,  he  sends  out  his  army, 
Killed  with  enmity  towards  the  people. 

Dibbarra  is  represented  as  addressing  this  governor: 

In  the  city  whither  T  send  thee, 

Thou  shalt  fear  no  one,  nor  have  compassion. 

Kill  the  young  and  old  alike, 

The  tender  suckling  likewise  —  spare  no  one. 

The  treasures  of  Babylon  carry  off  as  booty. 

tshurn  continues  his  narrative  : 

The  royal  host  was  gathered  together  and  entered  the  city. 

The  bow  was  strung,  the  sword  unsheathed. 

Thou  didst  blunt1  (?)  the  weapons  of  the  soldiers, 

The  servitors  of  Aim  and  Dagan. 

Their  blood  thou  caused  to  flow  like   torrents  of  water  through   the  city's 

highways. 
rhou  didst  tear  open  their  intestines,  and  cause  the  stream  to  carry  them 

text  obscure.     "  Sharpen  badly  "  seems  to  be  the  idiomatic  phrase  used. 


MYTHS  AND   LEGENDS.  531 

Dagari  is  here  used  for  Bel,1  and  the  phrase  '  servitors  of  Anu 
and  Dagan  '  embraces  the  inhabitants  of  Babylon.  Marduk, 
the  lord  of  Babylon,  is  enraged  at  the  sight,  but  apparently  is 
powerless. 

The  great  lord  Marduk  saw  it  and  cried  "  Alas  !  " 

His  senses  left  him. 
A  violent  curse  issued  from  his  mouth. 

At  this  point  the  tablet  is  defective,  and  when  it  again  becomes 
intelligible  we  find  Ishum  describing  an  attack  of  Dibbarra 
upon  another  of  the  great  centers  of  the  Euphrates  Valley  — 
the  city  of  Uruk.  Uruk  is  called  the  '  dwelling  of  Anu  and 
Ishtar,'  the  city  of  the  Kizreti,  Ukhati,  and  Kharimati2 — the 
sacred  harlots.     Uruk  suffers  the  same  fate  as  Babylon : 

A  cruel  and  wicked  governor  thou  didst  place  over  them, 
Who  brought  misery  upon  them,  broke  down  (?)  their  laws. 
Ishtar  was  enraged  and  filled  with  anger  because  of  Uruk. 

Her  opposition,  however,  is  as  powerless  to  stem  Dibbarra's 
attack  as  was  Marduk's  grief  at  the  onslaught  on  Babylon. 

Dibbarra's  greed  is  insatiable.  Ishum  continues  his  address 
to  him  : 

O  warrior  Dibbarra,  thou  dost  dispatch  the  just, 

Thou  dost  dispatch  the  unjust, 

Who  sins  against  thee,  thou  dost  dispatch, 

And  the  one  who  does  not  sin  against  thee  thou  dost  dispatch. 

The  following  lines  reveal  the  purpose  of  Ishum's  long 
speech.  A  war  more  terrible  even  than  the  conflicts  recounted 
is  planned  by  Ishum,  one  that  is  to  involve  all  creation  and 
extend  to  the  higher  regions.  Ishum  asks  Dibbarra's  consent 
to  the  fearful  destruction  held  in  view: 

The  brightness  of  Shul-pauddu3  I  will  destroy. 
The  root  of  the  tree  I  will  tear  out 
That  it  no  longer  blossom  ; 

1  See  above,  p.  154.  3  A  solar  deity.     See  p.  99. 

2  See  p.  475. 


532  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

Against  the  dwelling  of  the  king  of  gods,  I  will  proceed.  .  .  . 

The  warrior  Dibbarra  heard  him.1 

The  speech  of  Ishum  was  pleasant  to  him  as  fine  oil, 

And  thus  the  warrior  Dibbarra  spoke: 

Sea-coast    [against]   sea-coast,  Subartu   against   Subartu,  Assyrian  against 

Assyrian, 
Elamite  against  Elamite, 

site  against  Cassite, 
Sutaean  against  Sutaean, 
Kuthaean  against  Kuthaean, 
Lullubite  against  Lullubite, 

Country  against  country,  house  against  house,  man  against  man. 
Brother  is  to  show  no  mercy  towards  brother;  they  shall  kill  one  another. 

The  lines  remind  one  of  the  description  in  the  Gilgamesh 
epic  of  the  terror  aroused  by  the  deluge,2  and  one  might  be 
tempted  to  combine  Dibbarra's  speech  with  the  preceding 
words  of  Ishum,  and  interpret  this  part  of  the  Dibbarra  legend 
as  another  phase  of  the  same  nature  myth,  which  enters  as  a 
factor  in  the  narrative  of  the  Deluge.  However,  the  continua- 
tion (if  Dibbarra's  speech  shows  that  a  great  military  conflict  is 
foretold.  The  countries  named  are  those  adjacent  to  Babylonia, 
and  the  intention  of  the  writer  is  evidently  to  imply  that  the 
whole  world  is  to  be  stirred  up.  This  fearful  state  of  hostility 
is  to  continue  until 

After  a  time  the  Akkadian  will  come, 
( (verthrow  all  and  conquer  all  of  them. 

Akkad,  it  will  be  recalled,  is  a  name  for  Babylonia.  The  tri- 
umph of  Babylon  is  foretold  in  these  lines.  The  Akkadian  is, 
therefore,  none  other  than  Hammurabi,  who  succeeds  in  obtain- 
ing  the  supremacy  over  the  entire  Euphrates  Valley,  and  whose 
successors  for  many  centuries  claimed  control  of  the  four  quar- 
ters  <>f  the  world. 

It  is  evident  from  this  'prophecy'  that  the  Dibbarra  legend 
re<  eived  its  final  shape  under  inlluences  emanating  from  Baby- 
lon, pre<  isely  as  we  found  to  be  the  case  in  the  '  creation  '  story 

1  Ishum,  2  See  above,  p.  501. 


MYTHS  AND   LEGENDS.  533 

and  in  the  Gilgamesh  epic.  The  hostility  that  precedes  the 
coming  of  Hammurabi  points  to  the  violence  of  the  conflicts  in 
which  that  warrior  was  engaged,  while  the  exaggeration  of  this 
hostility  shows  how  strong  and  permanent  the  impression  of 
Hammurabi's  achievements  must  have  been.  The  designation 
of  the  conqueror  as  the  Akkadian  gives  him  to  a  certain  extent 
the  character  of  a  Messiah,  who  is  to  inaugurate  an  era  of 
peace,  and  whose  coming  will  appease  the  grim  Dibbarra.  It 
is  by  no  means  impossible  that  Hebrew  and  Christian  con- 
ceptions of  a  general  warfare  which  is  to  precede  the  golden 
age  of  peace  are  influenced  by  the  Babylonian  legend  under 
consideration. 

Dibbarra  gives  his  consent  to  Ishum's  plan  : 

Go,  Ishum,  cany  out  the  word  thou  hast  spoken  in  accordance  with  thy 
desire. 

Ishum  proceeds  to  do  so.  The  mountain  Khi-khi  is  the  first 
to  be  attacked. 

Ishum  directed  his  countenance  to  the  mountain  Khi-khi. 

The  god  Sibi,1  a  warrior  without  rival, 

Stormed  behind  him. 

The  warrior2  arrived  at  the  mountain  Khi-khi. 

He  raised  his  hand,  destroyed  the  mountain. 

He  levelled  the  mountain  Khi-khi  to  the  ground. 

The  vineyards  in  the  forest  of  Khashur  he  destroyed. 

In  a  geographical  list3  a  mountain  Khi-khi,  belonging  to  the 
Amoritic  country,  is  mentioned,  and  a  mountain  Khashur  de- 
scribed as  a  cedar  district.  There  can  be,  therefore,  no  doubt 
that  some  military  expedition  to  western  lands  is  recounted  in 
our  tablet.  The  continuation  of  the  narrative  is  lost,  all  but  a 
small  fragment,4  which  tells  of  the  destruction  of  a  city- 
otherwise  unknown  —  called  Inmarmaru.      At  the  instigation 

1  I.e.,  seven.     A  collective  personification  of  the  seven  evil  spirits. 

2  Ishum.  4  The  one  published  by  the  writer. 

3  IIR.  51,  19c  and  4a.     Khashur  is  also  used  as  a   name  for  the   cedar.     See 
Delitzsch,  Assyr.  Handw'drterbuch,  p.  295a. 


534  BA  /■  )  TL  ONI  AN- ASS  )  'R I  AX   REL  JGION. 

oi  Dibbarra,  [shura  enters  this  city  and  destroys  it.  The  out- 
rages committed  are  described  at  some  length.  Ea,  the  god  of 
humanity,  hears  of  the  havoc  wrought.  He  is  'filled  with 
wrath.'  Unfortunately,  the  fragment  is  too  mutilated  to  per- 
mit us  to  ascertain  what  steps  Ea  takes  against  Dibbarra. 
Marduk  is  also  mentioned  in  this  connection.  Under  the  cir- 
cumstances, one  can  only  conjecture  that  in  the  missing  por- 
tions of  this  tablet,  and  perhaps  also  in  two  others,  the  wars 
preceding  the  advent  of  the  Akkadian  l  are  recounted  in  poetic 
and  semi-mythical  form.  If  this  conjecture  is  justified,  the 
main  purport  at  least  of  the  Dibbarra  legend  becomes  clear. 
It  is  a  collection  of  war-songs  recalling  the  Hebrew  anthology, 
r'  Battles  of  Yah  we,"  2  in  which  the  military  exploits  of  the 
1 1  (.brews  were  poetically  set  forth. 

The  closing  tablet  of  the  Dibbarra  legend  is  preserved,3 
though  only  in  part.  It  describes  the  appeasement  of  the 
dreadful  war-god.  All  the  gods,  together  with  the  Igigi  and 
Anunnaki,  are  gathered  around  Dibbarra,  who  addresses  them: 

I  isten  all  of  you  to  my  words. 

Because  of  sin  did  I  formerly  plan  evil, 

My  heart  was  enraged  and  I  swept  peoples  away. 

lie  tells  how  he  destroyed  the  flocks  and  devastated  the  fruits 
in  the  fields,  how  he  swept  over  the  lands,  punishing  the  just 
and  the  wicked  alike,  and  sparing  no  one.  Ishum  takes  up  the 
strain  and  urges  Dibbarra  to  desist  from  his  wrath  : 

Do  thou  appease  the  gods  of  the  land,  who  were  angry, 

May  fnnts  (?)  and  corn4  flourish, 

May  mountains  ami  seas  bring  their  produce. 

1  Hammurabi  is  the  conqueror  of  Palestine  mentioned  in  Gen.  xiv.  under  the 
name  Amraphel.     See.  e.g.,  Hommel,  Altisraelitiscke  Ueberliefenmg,  p.  ro6. 

J  Num.  xxi.  i.|.  The  '  song  ol  Deborah '  (Judges,  v.)  belongs  to  this  collection. 
For  further  specimens  of  Babylonian  war-songs,  see  Hommel,  il>.  pp.  1S0-190,  —  all 
dealing  with  the  memorable  Hammurabi  period. 

3  K.  1282,  Harper,  ib.  pp    \  and  King's  fragment,  Zeitschrift  fur  At 

'  The  gods  of  vegetation  are  mentioned. 


MYTHS  AND   LEGENDS.  535 

The  era  of  peace  and  prosperity  is  thus  inaugurated,  and  the 
legend  closes  with  solemn  assurances  from  Dibbarra  that  he 
will  bless  and  protect  those  who  properly  honor  him. 

He  who  glorifies  my  name  will  rule  the  world. 

Who  proclaims  the  glory  of  my  power 

Will  be  without  a  rival. 

The  singer  who  sings  [of  my  deeds]  will  not  die  through  pestilence. 

To  kings  and  nobles  his  words  will  be  pleasing. 

The  writer  who  preserves  them  will  escape  from  the  grasp  of  the  enemy. 

In  the  temple  where  the  people  proclaim  my  name 

I  will  open  his  ear  ; 1 

In  the  house  where  this  tablet  is  set  up,  though  war  2  may  rage, 

And  god  Sibi  work  havoc, 

Sword  and  pestilence  will  not  touch  him — he  will  dwell  in  safety. 

Let  this  song  resound  forever  and  endure  for  eternity. 

Let  all  lands  hear  it  and  proclaim  my  power. 

Let  the  inhabitants  of  all  places  learn  to  glorify  my  name. 

This  closing  address  represents  a  late  addition  to  the  poem 
that  somewhat  modifies  its  original  import.  Wars  did  not 
cease  with  the  establishment  of  Babylon's  control.  Many  con- 
flicts arose,  but  on  the  whole,  Babylonia  was  an  empire  of 
peace.  The  people  were  inclined  towards  a  life  of  ease,  and 
the  development  of  commerce  served  as  a  wholesome  check 
against  too  frequent  military  disturbances.  The  war-songs,  as 
a  glorification  of  the  nation's  past,  retained  their  popularity, 
but  the  lesson  drawn  from  the  songs  was  the  great  blessing 
that  peace  and  freedom  from  turmoil  brought  with  them.  For 
the  warlike  Assyrians,  Dibbarra  enraged  may  have  been  a  more 
popular  figure,  but  to  the  peace-loving  Babylonian,  the  appeased 
I  Hbbarra  appealed  with  greater  force.  The  story  of  Dibbarra's 
deeds  became  in  this  way  in  the  course  of  time  an  object 
lesson,  a  kind  of  religious  allegory  handed  down  from  one  gen- 
eration to  the  other  as  an  illustration  of  the  horrors  of  war  and 

1  I.e.,  give  wisdom  to  the  one  who  honors  me. 

2  Text  '  Dibbarra.' 


536  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

of  violence  in  general.  With  the  tendency — so  characteristic 
of  the  Babylonian  religion  '  — for  great  gods  to  absorb  the  roles 
of  minor  ones,  Nergal  became  the  god  of  war  par  excellence^ 
while  Dibbarra,  Ishum,  and  Sibi  were  chiefly  viewed  as  powers 
responsible  fur  such  forms  of  violence  as  pestilence  and  dis- 
tress. To  ensure  the  favor  of  a  god  of  pestilence  was  of 
importance  for  every  individual,  and  one  of  the  safest  means 
of  obtaining  this  favor  was  to  sing  his  praises,  to  recall  his 
power, — to  glorify  him  and  thus  to  keep  him,  as  it  were,  in  good 
humor.  What  better  means  of  accomplishing  this  than  to  have 
the  record  of  his  deeds  constantly  before  one's  eyes  ?  The 
British  Museum  contains  two  specimens  of  tablets  on  which  a 
portion  of  the  Dibbarra  legend  is  inscribed,  and  which  are 
pierced  with  holes  in  a  manner  as  to  leave  no  doubt2  that  the 
tablets  were  intended  to  be  hung  up  in  houses  with  a  view  of 
securing  protection  from  Dibbarra  and  his  associates.  The 
reference  in  the  closing  lines  of  the  story: 

The  house  where  this  tablet  is  set  up, 

thus  becomes  clear.  As  the  Hebrews  were  commanded,  in 
order  to  secure  the  protection  of  Yahwe,  to  write  his  law 

On  the  doorposts  of  the  house,3 

so  the  Babylonians  were  instructed  by  their  priests  to  hang 
tablets  in  their  homes  —  probably  at  the  entrance  —  on  which 
Dibbarra  was  glorified.  Naturally,  it  was  impossible  to  inscribe 
the  whole  story  on  a  little  tablet,  just  as  it  was  impossible  to 
place  the  entire  law  of  Yahwe  on  the  doorposts.  In  both  cases 
a  significant  extract  served  as  a  part,  representative  of  the 
whole.  In  the  case  of  the  Dibbarra  legend,  the  closing  portion 
was  selected,  which  emphasized  the  necessity  of  keeping  the 
deeds  of  Dibbarra  and  the  greatness  of  his  power  in  mind. 
Like  the  Gilgamesh  epic,  so  the   Dibbarra  legend  was  to  be 

above,  p.  n|,  8  Deut.  vi.  9. 

-  As  Mr.  King  has  shown  {Zeitschrift fur  Assyriologie,  xi.  53).    See  above,  p. 269. 


MYTHS  AND   LEGENDS.  537 

taught  by  the  father  to  his  son.  The  scribes  were  enjoined  to 
teach  the  story  to  the  people.  The  poets  were  to  make  it  the 
subject  of  their  songs,  and  kings  and  nobles  were  not  exempt 
from  the  obligation  to  listen  to  the  tale. 

The  Myth  of  the  Storm-God  Zu. 

Birds  and  bulls  were  to  the  Babylonians  the  symbols  of 
storms  and  clouds.  In  the  Gilgamesh  epic,  it  will  be  recalled, 
Anu  sends  a  divine  bull  to  engage  in  a  contest  with  Gilgamesh.1 
The  text  of  the  epic  being  unfortunately  defective,  we  have  no 
definite  indication  of  the  character  of  the  attack  to  be  made 
upon  the  hero  by  the  messenger  from  the  god  of  heaven;  but 
since  storms  and  disease  are  the  two  chief  weapons  in  the 
hands  of  the  gods,  and  inasmuch  as  Gilgamesh  in  a  later  sec- 
tion of  the  epic  is  struck  down  by  disease,  it  is  more  than 
likely  that  the  bull  represents  a  storm  that  is  to  sweep  the  hero 
and  his  companion  off  the  earth.  The  winged  bulls  placed  at 
the  entrance  of  palaces  embody  the  same  idea,  and  in  addition 
to  the  explanation  for  these  fantastic  figures  above  2  suggested, 
it  is  noteworthy  that  the  two  types  of  animals  chosen  for  this 
symbolical  decoration  of  edifices,  the  bull  and  the  lion,  again 
illustrate  the  same  two  means  at  the  disposal  of  the  gods  for 
the  punishment  of  man,  the  bull  representing  the  storms,  and 
the  lion  being  the  symbol  of  Nergal,  who  is  the  god  of  pestilence, 
as  well  as  of  war  and  of  violent  destruction  in  general. 

A  storm-god  symbolized  under  the  form  of  a  bird  is  Zu.  The 
underlying  stem  of  the  word  conveys  the  notion  of  strength 
and  violence.  How  bulls  came  to  be  chosen  as  symbols  of 
storms  is  not  altogether  clear.  Possibly  the  element  of  '  strength ' 
formed  the  connecting  link  in  the  chain  of  the  association  of 
ideas.  In  the  case  of  birds,  on  the  other  hand,  the  association 
is  to  be  sought  in  the  appearance  of  the  clouds  during  a  storm 

l  See  p.  4S3.  2  See  p.  263. 


538  BA 1!  YLOA  I A  N-ASS  YRIAN  RELIGION. 

moving  across  the  heavens  like  a  (lock  of  birds.  In  the  Etana 
legend,  a  reference  occurs  to  Zu,  who,  as  it  would  appear,  is  un- 
able to  escape  from  the  control  of  the  supreme  judge  Shamash.1 
Zu  is  there  called  the  chief  worker  of  evil  —  a  kind  of  arch  satan. 
A  Story  has  been  found  which  illustrates  an  attempt  made  by 
the  bird  Zu  to  break  loose  from  the  control  of  the  sun.  A 
storm  was  viewed  as  a  conflict  between  the  clouds  and  the  sun, 
much  as  an  eclipse  symbolized  a  revolt  in  the  heavens.  The 
myth  represents  the  conflict  as  taking  place  between  Zu  and 
En-lil,  the  Bel  of  Nippur.  The  latter  holds  in  his  possession 
the  tablets  of  fate,  by  means  of  which  he  enjoys  supreme 
authority  over  men  and  gods.  Zu's  jealousy  is  aroused,  and  he 
plans  to  tear  these  tablets  from  En-lil.  The  tablets  of  fate,  it 
will  be  recalled,  play  an  important  part  in  the  Marduk-Tiamat 
episode.2  Kingu--the  symbol  of  chaos,  like  Tiamat —  wears 
them  on  his  breast,  but  he  is  obliged  to  yield  them  to  the  con- 
queror  of  Tiamat  and  of  her  brood,  who  replaces  'chaos'  by 
'order.'  This  conqueror  was  originally  Bel  of  Nippur,  and 
the  Zu  myth  in  representing  En-lil  as  holding  the  tablets  of  fate 
confirms  the  view  above  set  forth,"  according  to  which  the 
original  Tiamat  tale  has  been  modified  by  the  substitution  of 
Marduk  for  the  old  Bel.  But  the  story,  while  thus  admitting 
the  legitimacy  of  En-lil's  claim  to  supreme  power,  is  yet  so  con- 
structed as  to  contribute  to  the  glory  of  Marduk.  The  attack 
of  the  Zu-bird  was  suggested  —  as  the  Tiamat  myth — by  the 
annual  storms  that  work  such  havoc  in  babylonia.  The  forces 
of  '  chaos'  are  let  loose,  and  an  attempt  is  made  to  overthrow 
the  'order'  of  the  world,  symbolized  by  the  tablets  of  fate 
which  En-lil  holds  in  his  possession.  Whoever  has  these- 
tablets  is  invincible.  but  En-lil  is  unable  to  resist  the  attack 
ol  Zu.  The  tablets  an-  taken  away  from  him,  and  it  is  left  for 
M  irduk   to   recapture   them.       The    tablets    once    in    Marduk's 

1  s.-c  ]..  525.  -  See  pp.  420,  42S. 

:l  See  pp.   1  ;.,  seq. 


MYTHS  AND   LEGENDS.  539 

possession,  En-lil's  supremacy  comes  to  an  end,  and  the  tri- 
umph of  Marduk  is  complete.  To  substantiate  this  interpre- 
tation of  the  myth,  an  analysis  of  the  text  is  necessary.  The 
beginning  of  the  story  is  unfortunately  missing.  It  appears 
to  have  been  devoted  to  a  glorification  of  the  god  who  controls 
the  fate  of  the  universe.    The  second  column  opens  as  follows: 

And  the  oracles  of  all  the  gods  he  determined. 

From  the  context  it  is  clear  that  Bel  of  Nippur  is  meant.  Up 
to  this  point,  the  myth  reflects  the  old  view  according  to  which 
it  was  En-lil  who  succeeded  in  overcoming  Tiamat  or  at  any 
rate,  in  snatching  the  tablets  of  fate  from  the  breast  of  Kingu. 
Nippur' j  god  lays  claim  to  being  the  one  who  established  'order' 
in  the  universe.  His  authority  could  only  be  threatened  if  he 
were  robbed  of  the  tablets  which  symbolize  absolute  control 
over  the  course  of  affairs.     Zu  boldly  attempts  this: 

His  eyes  saw  the  mark  of  rulership, 

The  crown  of  his1  sovereignty,  the  garment  of  his1  divinity. 

Zu  saw  the  divine  tablets  of  fate. 

He  looked  at  the  father  of  the  gods,  the  god  of  Dur-an-ki,2 

Desire  for  rulership  seizes  hold  of  his  heart.' 

'  I  will  take  the  tablets  of  the  gods 

And  decree  the  decisions  [of  all  the  gods.'] 

I  will  establish  my  throne,  I  will  proclaim  laws. 

I  will  give  all  orders  to  all  the  Igigi.' 

Zu  proceeds  to  the  dwelling-place  of  En-lil  and  waits  for  a 
favorable  moment  to  make  an  attack. 

His  heart  was  bent  on  the  contest. 

With  his  gaze  directed  toward  the  entrance  of  the  dwelling,4  he  awaits  for 
the  beginning  of  day. 

1  I.e.,  En-lil's. 

2  I.e.,  '  the  bond  of  heaven  and  earth,'  the  name  probably  of  a  temple-tower  in  Nip- 
pur, sacred  to  En-lil. 

3  Zu's  heart.     These  two  lines  are  repeated. 

4  The  word  Kissu  applies  more  especially  to  the  dwelling  places  of  the  gods. 
Delitzsch,  Assyr.  Handiv'drterbuch,  p.  349b. 


540  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

As  En-lil  poured  forth  the  brilliant  waters, 
Took  his  seat  on  his  throne  and  put  on  his  crown, 
lie1  snatched  the  tablets  of  fate  out  of  his  hands, 
Seized  the  authority  —  the  promulgation  of  laws. 
Thereupon  Zu  flew  ofl  and  hid  himself  in  his  mountain. 

(  >n  seal  cylinders  a  god  is  frequently  pictured  pouring  forth 
streams  of  water  from  jars  placed  on  his  shoulders.  This  is 
generally  the  sun-god,  but  the  symbol  also  seems  to  belong  to 
other  deities"  and  is  appropriate  to  Bel  of  Nippur,  who  as  the 
god  <>l  the  atmosphere  above  the  earth,  controls- the  upper  wa- 
ters. As  long  as  these  are  poured  out  by  him,  they  are  benefi- 
cent ;  but  once  beyond  his  control,  the  blessing  of  rain  is  turned 
into  the  curse  of  a  deluge  and  storm,  flooding  the  fields  and 
sweeping  away  the  habitations  of  men.  This  misfortune  hap- 
pens when  Zu  robs  En-lil  of  the  tablets  by  means  of  which  law 
and  order  are  established.  En-lil  is  powerless.  The  bold  act 
of  Zu  causes  consternation  among  the  gods.  Anu  calls  upon 
some  one  to  pursue  Zu  and  capture  him.  The  bird  dwells  in 
an  inaccessible  recess  in  the  mountains,  and  the  gods  are  afraid 
to  approach  his  nest.  The  scene  that  ensues  reminds  us  of  the 
episode  of  the  creation  epic,  where  Anshar  calls  upon  Anu,  Bel, 
and  Ea  in  turn  to  subdue  Tiamat. 

Ann  opens  his  mouth  and  speaks, 
Addressing  the  gods  his  children: 

Who  will  force  Zu  to  submit 
And  thus  make  his  name  great  among  the  inhabitants  of  the  whole  world  ? ' 

Ramman  the  storm-god  par  cxcellc7ice  is   first  called  upon  by 
tin'  assembled  gods: 

'  Ramman  the  chief,'  they  cried,  '  the  son  of  Ann.' 

Ami  <  ommunicated  to  him8  the  order.' 

'Go,  my  sou  Ramman,  conqueror  who  yields  to  no  one, 

i  Zu. 

flinders  of  the  Metropolitan  Museum  of  Art,  p.  12. 
:!  Ramman. 
■'  These  two  lines  air  repeated. 


MYTHS  AND   LEGENDS.  541 

Subdue  Zu  with  thy  weapon,1 

That  thy  name  be  glorified  in  the  assembly  of  the  great  gods. 

Thou  shalt  be  without  a  rival  among  the  gods  thy  brothers.' 

Ann  furthermore  promises  Ramman   that  if  he  triumphs,  lofty 
shrines  will  be  erected  in  his  honor  in  many  cities. 

'  Temples  will  be  built  in  thy  honor, 

In  all  quarters  of  the  world  thy  cities'2  will  be  situated, 

Thy  cities  3  will  reach  up  to  Ekur.4 

Show  thyself  strong  among  the  gods,  so  that  thy  name  be  powerf  id.' 

Ramman,  however,  is  afraid  of  the  contest. 

Ramman  answered  the  speech, 

Addressing  his  father  Anu : 

'  My  father,  who  can  proceed  to  the  inaccessible  mountain  ? 

Who  is  there  like  Zu  among  the  gods,  thy  children  ? ' 

He  furthermore  pleads  that  Zu,  who  has  the  tablets  of  fate  in 
his  hands,  is  invincible.  He  has  the  power  to  decree  the  fates 
of  the  gods,  and  all  must  bow  to  his  will.  At  this  point,  unfor- 
tunately, the  text  becomes  defective.  Anu  calls  upon  two 
other  gods  to  take  up  the  contest  with  Zu.  The  name  of  one 
of  these  is  altogether  lost  ;  the  second  is  called  Bar,5  and  is 
designated  as  an  offspring  of  Ishtar.  Both  these  deities  decline, 
answering  Anu  in  precisely  the  same  manner  as  Ramman. 
What  finally  happens  we  are  left  to  conjecture.  Harper0  sup- 
poses that  Shamash  is  finally  called  upon  by  Anu  and  accepts 
the  challenge.  He  bases  this  opinion  upon  the  passage  in  the 
Dibbarra  legend7  where  the  serpent,  appealing  to  Shamash, 
extols  the  sun-god's  power  by  declaring  that  even  Zu  could 
not  escape  the  net  of  Shamash.  There  are,  however,  grave 
objections  to  this  view.    In  the  first  place,  the  passage  in  ques- 

1  The  thunderbolt.  2  Cities  sacred  to  thee. 

3  I.e.,  the  sacred  edifices  in  these  cities. 

4  The  lofty  dwelling  of  the  gods  is  here  meant.     See  chapter  xxvii. 

5  Ideographic  reading  —  the  ideograph  signifies  '  shrine.'     The  veil >al  stem  bararu 
means  '  to  shine.'  6  See  p.  414.  r  See  p.  525. 


542  BAB  )  'LONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

tion  occurs  in  a  defective  part  of  the  text,  and  Harper  himself 
is  not  certain  of  the  restoration  that  he  proposes.2  Secondly, 
if  Shamash  conquers  Zu,  we  should  expect  the  sun-god  to  have 
the  tablets  of  fate  in  his  possession.  Such,  however,  is  not  the 
case,  and  the  only  god  besides  En-lil  who  is  represented  in  the 
religious  literature  of  the  Babylonians  as  holding  the  tablets  is 
Marduk.  .Moreover,  in  a  hymn  to  Marduk,  which  Harper  him- 
self quotes,3  the  bird  Zu  is  referred  to  as  among  the  evil  forces 
captured  by  Marduk.  In  view  of  this,  there  seems  no  reason 
to  question  that,  in  the  present  form  of  the  Zu  myth,  Marduk 
was  introduced  as  the  hero,  precisely  as,  in  the  present  form  of 
the  Tiamat  episode,  Marduk  successfully  carries  out  a  deed 
from  which  the  other  gods  shrink  in  fear.  The  theological 
purport  of  the  myth  thus  becomes  clear.  It  is  to  account  for 
the  fact  that  Marduk  holds  the  tablets  which  were  originally 
in  the  hands  of  En-lil.  Marduk  supplants  the  old  Bel.  In 
the  Tiamat  episode  his  name  is  substituted  for  that  of  En-lil, 
and  the  latter  is  represented  as  giving  his  consent  to  the  trans- 
fer of  his  name  to  the  god  of  Babylon.  In  the  Zu  myth,  En-lil's 
claim  to  the  supreme  control  of  the  laws  and  fate  of  the  uni- 
verse is  freely  acknowledged,  but,  En-lil  being  unable  to  resist 
the  attack  of  Zu,  it  was  left  for  Marduk  to  capture  the  bird  and 
thus  acquire  by  his  own  efforts  what  the  old  Bel  had  lost 
through  lack  of  strength.  Babylon  replaces  Nippur  as  the 
center  of  power  in  the  Euphrates  Valley,  and  the  god  of  Baby- 
lon, naturally,  was  imbued  by  his  worshippers  with  prerogatives 
that  originally  belonged  to  the  rival  god  of  Nippur.4 

II  this  view  is  correct,  Harper's  interpretation  must  be  aban- 

ee  p.  400.  8  Sec  p.  417. 

-  It  is  quite  possible  tint  the  line  in  question  declares  that  Zu  is  in  collusion  with 
1  Nst  whom  the  serpent  seeks  the  assistance  of  Shamash. 

•'  It  is  hardly  possible  that    the   illustration  on  seal  cylinders  mentioned   by  Ward. 
.  1  |.   represents  the   Zu   bird   brought   before  a  deity   tor   punishment;  and 
inly  not  before  Shamash.  who  only  enters  into  the  story  in  so  far  as  Marduk  is 
a  solar  deity. 


MYTHS  AND   LEGENDS.  543 

doned.  The  Zu  myth  does  not  represent,  as  he  supposes,  an 
attack  upon  Marduk  as  the  symbol  of  the  early  morning  sun, 
but  upon  En-lil,  the  Bel  of  Nippur,  as  the  one  who,  by  virtue  of 
having  the  tablets  of  fate  in  his  possession,  controls  the  laws  of 
the  universe  and  fixes  the  fate  of  the  gods  and  of  mankind. 
The  annual  rain-storm  passing  apparently  beyond  the  control 
of  the  gods  is  viewed  as  a  revolt  against  En-liFs  authority.  It 
is  left  for  Marduk  to  reestablish  order,  and  in  return,  he  retains 
control  of  the  precious  tablets.  That  the  conception  of  Marduk 
as  a  solar  deity  constitutes  a  factor  in  the  myth  is  not,  of  course, 
to  be  denied,  precisely  as  in  the  Tiamat  myth,  the  solar  charac- 
ter of  Marduk  plays  an  important  part.  The  sun  triumphs 
over  the  storms.  Rain  and  wind  are  obliged  at  last  to  yield 
their  authority  to  the  former.  But  for  the  theologians  of  Baby- 
lon, the  position  of  Marduk  as  the  head  of  the  pantheon  was  a 
much  more  important  factor.  The  myth  served  to  show  how 
Marduk  came  to  supplant  the  role  of  the  old  Bel  of  Nippur. 

Viewed  in  this  light,  the  Zu  myth  appears  in  more  senses 
than  one  as  a  pendant  to  the  Marduk-Tiamat  episode.  Not 
only  do  both  symbolize  the  same  natural  phenomenon,  but  in 
both,  Bel  of  Nippur  was  originally  the  central  figure  of  the  pan- 
theon, and  in  both  Marduk  replaces  Bel.  The  Zu  myth  is 
made  to  account  in  a  somewhat  more  respectful,  conciliatory 
manner  for  the  position  of  Marduk  as  the  head  of  the  pantheon. 
Instead  of  setting  aside  En-lil  altogether,  as  was  done  by  the 
compilers  of  the  Tiamat  myth,  Marduk  conquers  for  himself 
the  supremacy  that  his  followers  claimed  for  him.  The  con- 
tradictions between  the  two  myths  need  not  disturb  us.  As 
variant  versions  of  a  tale  intended  to  account  for  one  and  the 
same  fact,  —  the  supremacy  of  Marduk,— they  may  well  have 
arisen  even  in  the  same  place.  Such  inconsistencies  as  the 
assumption,  in  the  Zu  version  of  the  nature  myth,  that  En-lil  is 
the  original  establisher  of  order  in  the  world,  as  against  the 
Tiamat  version    where    Marduk   snatches   the  tablets  of  fate 


Ml  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION 

directly  from  Kingu,  are  inevitable  when  stories  that  arose 
among  the  people  are  taken  in  hand  by  theologians  and  modi- 
fied and  adapted  to  serve  doctrines  developed  under  scholastic 
influences. 

The  Adapa  Legend. 

The  myths  and  legends  that  we  have  so  far  considered  - 
including  the  creation  and  Gilgamesh  epics  —  will  have  illus- 
trated two  important  points  :  firstly,  the  manner  in  which 
historical  occurrences  were  clothed  in  mythical  form  and  inter- 
woven with  purely  legendary  tales,  and,  secondly,  the  way  in 
which  nature  myths  were  treated  to  teach  certain  doctrines. 
The  story  of  Gilgamesh  is  an  illustration  of  the  hopelessness  of 
a  mortal's  attempt  to  secure  the  kind  of  immortal  life  which  is 
the  prerogative  of  the  gods.  Popular  tales,  illustrative  of  the 
climatic  conditions  of  Babylonia,  serve  as  a  means  of  unfolding 
a  doctrine  of  evolution  and  of  impressing  upon  the  people  a 
theological  system  of  beliefs  regarding  the  relationship  of  the 
gods  to  one  another.  A  collection  of  war-songs  is  given  a  semi- 
mythical  form,  and  the  original  purport  of  the  collection  is 
modified  to  serve  as  a  talisman  against  misfortunes.  In  the 
case  of  these  legends  it  is  necessary  and,  as  we  have  seen,  also 
possible  to  distinguish  between  their  original  and  present  form 
and  to  separate  the  story,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Gilgamesh  epic, 
into  its  component  parts. 

The  legend  that  we  are  about  to  consider  proves  that  this 
process  of  the  adaptation  of  popular  myths  begins  at  a  very 
early  period.  The  text  was  found  on  the  cuneiform  tablets  dis- 
covered at  El-Amarna  in  Egypt.1  Since  the  El-Amarna  tablets 
date  from  the  fifteenth  century  B.C.,  we  have  a  proof  of  the 
compilation  of  the  legend  in  question  at  this  date.  The  legend 
is  again  suggested  by  the  storms  which  visited   Babylonia,  but 

1  Published   by   Winckler  and   Abel,   Der    Thontafelfund  von   El-Amarna^  iii. 
.  b;  translated  also  by   Harper,  ib.  pp.  420,  421. 


MYTHS   AND   LEGENDS.  545 

instead  of  a  pure  nature-myth,  we  have  a  tale  which  concerns 
the  relationship  between  the  gods  and  mankind.  In  its  present 
form,  it  is  an  object  lesson  dealing  with  the  same  problem  that 
we  came  across  in  the  Gilgamesh  epic  and  that  we  will  meet 
again  in  another  form, —  the  problem  of  immortality. 

The  beginning  of  the  story,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Zu  myth,  is 
missing,  but  we  are  in  a  position  to  restore  at  least  the  general 
context.  A  fisherman,  Adapa,  is  engaged  in  plying  his  trade 
when  a  storm  arises.  Adapa  is  designated  as  the  son  of  Ea. 
The  place  where  he  is  fishing  is  spoken  of  as  '  the  sea.'  The 
Persian  Gulf  is  meant,  and  this  body  of  water  (as  the  begin- 
ning of  the  great  Okeanos)  being  sacred  to  Ea,1  the  description 
of  Adapa  as  the  son  of  Ea  is  a  way  of  conveying  the  idea  that, 
like  Parnapishtim,  he  stands  under  the  protection  of  Ea.  The 
story,  like  most  legends,  assumes  a  period  of  close  intercourse 
between  gods  and  men,  a  time  when  the  relationship  involved 
in  being  'a  son  of  a  god'  had  a  literal  force  which  was  lost  to  a 
more  advanced  generation.  Adapa,  accordingly,  is  portrayed 
as  fishing  for  the  '  house  of  his  lord,'  i.e.,  for  Ea.  When  the 
storm  breaks  loose  the  fisherman,  though  a  mortal,  subdues  the 
fierce  element.  The  storm  comes  from  the  south,  the  direction 
from  which  the  most  destructive  winds  came  to  Babylonia.  The 
south  wind  is  pictured,  as  in  the  Zu  myth,  under  the  form  of  a 
bird.  The  wind  sweeps  Adapa  into  the  waters,  but,  since  this 
element  is  controlled  by  Adapa's  father,  — the  god  Ea,  — Adapa 
succeeds  in  mastering  the  south  wind,  and,  as  we  learn  from 
the  course  of  the  narrative,  in  breaking  the  wings  of  the  storm- 
bird.  When  the  tablet  becomes  intelligible  we  find  Adapa 
engaged  in  this  contest  with  the  south  wind.2 

The  south  wind  blew  and  drove  him  3  under  the  water.  Into  the  dwell- 
ing-place4 [of  the  fish]  it  engulfs  him.  'O  south  wind,  thou  hast  over- 
whelmed me  with  thy  cruelty  (?).     Thy  wings  I  will  break.' 

i  See  above,  p.  63.  3  Adapa. 

2  My  rendering  is  given  in  continuous  lines.  The  legend  is  in  narrative,  not  in 
poetic  form.  4  Lit., '  house.' 


S  If,  BAB  J  LONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Adapa's  threat  is  carried  out. 

Even  as  he  spoke  the  wings  of  the  south  wind  were  broken.  For  seven 
days  the  south  wind  did  not  blow  across  the  land. 

Seven  is  to  be  interpreted  as  a  round  number,  as  in  the 
Deluge  story,  and  indicates  a  rather  long,  though  indefinite, 
period.  Anu,  the  god  of  heaven,  is  astonished  at  this  long- 
continued  disappearance  of  the  south  wind,  and  asks  a  mes- 
senger of  his,  who  is  called  the  god  Ilabrat,  for  the  cause.  Anu 
inquires: 

"  Why  has  the  south  wind  not  blown  for  seven  days  across  the  land?" 
His  messenger  Ilabrat  answered  him  :  "  My  lord  !  Adapa,  the  son  of  Ea, 
has  broken  the  wings  of  the  south  wind." 

Of  this  god  Ilabrat  nothing  is  known.  The  interpretation  of 
his  name  is  doubtful.1  He  probably  is  one  of  the  numerous 
local  gods  who  was  absorbed  by  some  more  powerful  one  and 
who  thus  came  to  have  a  position  of  inferior  rank  in  the 
pantheon. 

Anu,  upon  hearing  the  news,  is  enraged,  and  cries  for  '  help ' 
against  an  interference  in  his  domain.  He  denounces  Adapa 
in  solemn  assembly,  and  demands  his  presence  of  Ea,  in  whose 
domain  Adapa  has  taken  refuge.  The  text  at  this  point  is 
defective,  but  one  can  gather  that  Ea,  who  constitutes  himself 
Adapa's  protector,  warns  the  latter,  as  he  warned  Parnapishtim. 
He  advises  him  to  present  himself  at  the  throne  of  Anu  for 
trial,  and  to  secure  the  intervention  of  two  gods,  Tammuz  and 
Gishzida,  who  are  stationed  at  the  gate  of  heaven,  Anu's 
dwelling-place.  To  accomplish  this,  Adapa  is  to  clothe  himself 
in  garments  of  mourning,  and  when  the  doorkeepers  ask  him 
the  reason  for  his  mourning,  he  is  to  answer: 

.  .  .  Two  gods  have  disappeared  from  our  earth,  therefore  do  I  appear 

thus. 

1  Neither  Delitzsch's  suggestion  ' god  of  dwellings'  nor  Harper's 'god  thou  art 
strong'  is  acceptable. 


MYTHS   AND   LEGENDS.  547 

And  when  he  is  asked  : 

"  Who  are  the  two  gods  who  have  disappeared  from  the  earth  ? " 
Tammuz   and    Gishzida  will  look  at  one   another;  they  will  sigh  and 

speak  a  favorable  word  before  Anu,  and  the  glorious  countenance  of  Anu 

they  will  show  thee. 

Tammuz  and  Gishzida  will  know  that  they  are  meant.  The 
mourning  of  Adapa  will  be  regarded  as  a  sign  of  reverence  for 
the  two  gods,  whose  sympathy  and  good-will  will  thus  be 
secured. 

The  introduction  of  Tammuz  and  Gishzida  introduces  a 
widely  spread  nature-myth  into  the  story.  Gishzida  is  identical 
with  Nin-gishzida,  a  solar  deity  whom  we  came  across  in  the 
old  Babylonian  pantheon.1  Tammuz  similarly  is  a  solar  deity. 
Both  represent  local  solar  cults.  At  a  later  period,  Nin-gishzida 
is  entirely  absorbed  by  Ninib,  but  the  Adapa  legend  affords  us 
a  glimpse  of  the  god  still  occupying  an  independent,  though  al- 
ready inferior,  position.  The  Babylonian  calendar2  designates 
the  fifth  month  as  sacred  to  Gishzida,  while  the  fourth  month  is 
named  for  Tammuz.  The  two  deities,  therefore,  take  their 
place  in  the  systematized  pantheon  as  symbolical  of  the  phases 
of  the  sun  peculiar  to  its  approach  to  the  summer  solstice. 
The  disappearance  of  the  two  gods  signifies  the  decline  of  the 
year  after  the  summer  solstice.  Of  Tammuz,  the  popular  myth 
related  that  it  was  Ishtar,;J  represented  as  his  consort,  who  car- 
ried him  off.  Since  the  disappearance  of  Gishzida  embodies 
precisely  the  same  idea  as  that  of  Tammuz,  it  was  natural  that 
the  story  should  in  time  have  been  told  only  of  the  one.  The 
annual  mourning  for  Tammuz  was  maintained  in  Babylonia  to 
a  very  late  period.  The  Adapa  legend  shows  us  that  at  one 
time  the  festival  was  celebrated  in  honor  of  the  two  related 
deities.  The  Tammuz  festival  was  celebrated  just  before  the 
summer   solstice   set   in,  so   that   the   mourning   was  followed 

i  See  p.  99.  2  See  p.  462. 

3  See  the  following  chapter. 


548  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

immediately  by  rejoicing  at  the  reappearance  of  the  god  whose 
coming  heralded  the  culmination  of  vegetation. 

The  destructive  storms  take  place  during  the  winter,  when 
Tammuz  and  Gishzida  have  disappeared.  Adapa's  mourning 
is  thus  an  indication  of  the  season  of  the  year  when  his  encoun- 
ter with  the  south  wind  took  place.  Since  Adapa  succeeds  in 
overcoming  the  destructive  wind,  the  wintry  season  has  passed 
by.  Summer  is  approaching.  The  time  for  celebrating  both 
the  fast  and  the  festival  of  the  two  solar  deities  has  arrived. 
Tammuz  and  Gishzida,  the  gods  of  spring,  accordingly  stand 
at  Adapa's  side,  ready  to  plead  his  cause  before  Aim.  So 
much  being  clear,  we  may  advance  a  step  further  in  the  inter- 
pretation of  the  legend.  By  the  side  of  Tammuz  and  Gishzida, 
there  is  still  a  third  solar  deity  who  belongs  to  the  spring  of 
the  year,  -  Marduk,  who,  by  virtue  of  his  later  position  as  the 
head  of  the  pantheon,  sets  aside  his  two  fellows  and  becomes 
the  solar  god  of  spring  par  excellence.  Marduk,  it  will  be 
recalled,  is  commonly  designated  as  the  son  of  Ea,1  and  we 
have  seen  that,  apart  from  political  considerations,  the  sun 
rising  out  of  the  ocean  —  the  domain  of  Ea  —  was  a  factor  in 
this  association.  Adapa  dwells  at  the  sea,  and  is  forced  into 
the  ocean  by  the  south  wind,  in  the  same  way  that  the  sun  dips 
into  the  great  '  Okeanos  '  every  evening.  The  identification  of 
Adapa  with  Marduk'-'  thus  becomes  apparent,  and  as  a  matter 
of  fact  the  Babylonian  scribes  of  later  times3  accepted  this 
identification. 

The  basis  of  the  Adapa  legend  is,  therefore,  the  nature-myth 
of  the  annual  fight  of  the  sun  with  the  violent  elements  of 
nature.  At  the  same  time,  other  ideas  have  been  introduced 
into  it,  and  Adapa  himself,  while  playing  the  role  of  Marduk,  is 
\et  nni  entirely  confounded  with  this  god.      His  name  is  nevei 

1  See  pp.  i  ','1  v./. 

'-'  First  suggested  by  Zimmern. 

3  Of  the  eighth  century.     See  Harper,  ib.  p.  4.'.). 


MYTHS   AND   LEGENDS.  549 

written  with  the  determinative  for  deity.  Moreover,  the  nature- 
myth  is  soon  lost  sight  of,  in  order  to  make  room  for  an  entirely 
different  order  of  ideas.  The  real  purport  of  the  legend  in  its 
present  form  is  foreshadowed  by  the  further  advice  that  Ea 
offers  to  Adapa: 

When  thou  comest  before  Ami  they  will  offer  thee  food  of  death.  Do 
not  eat.  They  will  offer  thee  waters  of  death.  Do  not  drink.  They  will 
offer  thee  a  garment.  Put  it  on.  They  will  offer  thee  oil.  Anoint  thy- 
self. The  order  that  I  give  thee  do  not  neglect.  The  word  that  I  speak  to 
thee  take  to  heart.  The  messenger  of  Anu  approached.1  '  Adapa  has 
broken  the  wings  of  the  south  wind.     Deliver  him  into  my  hands.  .  .  .' 

Ea  obeys  the  order,  delivers  up  Adapa,  and  everything  happens 
as  was  foretold. 

Upon  mounting  to  heaven  and  on  his  approach  to  the  gate  of  Anu, 
Tammuz  and  Gishzida  were  stationed  at  the  gate  of  Anu.  They  saw  Adapa 
and  cried  '  Help,-  Lord  !  Why  art  thou  thus  attired  ?  For  whom  hast  thou 
put  on  mourning?'3 

Adapa  replies  : 

'Two   gods    have  disappeared  from  the  earth,   therefore  do  I  wear  a 

mourning  garment.' 

'  Who  are  the  two  gods  who  have  disappeared  from  the  earth  ? ' 
Tammuz   and    Gishzida   looked   at  one   another,  broke   out  in  lament. 

'  O  Adapa  !   Step  before  King  Anu.'     As  he  approached,  Anu  saw  him  and 

cried  out  to  him  : 

'  Come,  Adapa,  why  hast  thou  broken  the  wings  of  the  south  wind  ? ' 
Adapa  answered  Anu  :  '  My  lord  !     For  the  house  of  my  lord4  I  was 

fishing  in  the  midst  of  the  sea.     The  waters  lay  still  around  me,  when  the 

south  wind  began  to  blow  and  forced  me  underneath.    Into  the  dwelling  of 

the  fish  it  drove  me.     In  the  anger  of  my  heart  [I  broke  the  wings  of  the 

south  wind].' 

Tammuz  and  Gishzida  thereupon  intercede  with  Anu  on 
behalf  of  Adapa,  and  succeed  in  appeasing  the  god's  wrath.    If 

1  To  Ea.  4  />•,  Ea. 

2  Anu,  it  will  be  recalled,  utters  the  same  cry.     See  p.  546. 

3  Referring  to  his  garments  of  mourning. 


BAB  )  I. ONI  AN- ASS  J  'RL  IN   RELIGION. 

the  story  ended  here,  we  would  have  a  pure  nature-myth  the 
same  myth  in  a  different  form  that  we  encountered  in  the  Cre- 
ation epic,  in  the  Deluge  story,  and  in  the  Zu  legend.  Adapa 
would  be  merely  a  designation  of  Marduk  and  nothing  more. 
The  sun  triumphs  over  the  storms,  and  the  only  objectionable 
feature  in  the  tale  —  to  a  Babylonian  —  would  be  the  degra- 
dation involved  in  obliging  Marduk  to  secure  the  intercession 
of  other  gods.  But  this  feature  of  itself  suggests  that  the  nature- 
myth  has  been  embodied  in  the  legend,  but  does  not  constitute 
the  whole  of  it.  A  second  element  and  one  entirely  independ- 
ent in  its  character  has  been  added  to  the  myth. 

Anu  is  appeased,  but  he  is  astonished  at  Ea's  patronage  of 
Adapa,  as  a  result  of  which  a  mortal  has  actually  appeared  in 
a  place  set  aside  for  the  gods. 

Why  did  Ea  permit  an  impure  mortal  to  see  the  interior  of  heaven  and 
earth  ?     He  made  him  great  and  gave  him  fame.1 

The  privilege  accorded  to  Adapa  appears  to  alarm  the  gods. 
As  among  the  Greeks  and  other  nations,  so  also  the  Babylonian 
deities  were  not  free  from  jealousy  at  the  power  and  achieve- 
ments of  humanity.  Adapa,  having  viewed  the  secrets  of 
heaven  and  earth,  there  was  nothing  left  for  the  gods  but  to 
admit  him  into  their  circle.  The  narrative  accordingly  con- 
tinues : 

'  Now  what  shall  we  grant  him  ?  Offer  him  food  of  life,  that  he  may  eat 
of  it.'  They  brought  it  to  him,  but  he  did  not  eat.  Waters  of  life  they 
brought  him,  hut  he  did  not  drink.  A  garment  they  brought  him.  He  put 
it  on.     <  >il  they  brought  him.     He  anointed  himself. 

Adapa  follows  the  instructions  of  Ea,  but  the  latter,  it  will 
be  recalled,  tells  Adapa  that  food  and  water  of  dcatJi  will  be 
offered  him.  It  is  Ea,  therefore,  who,  although  the  god  of 
humanity,  and  who,  moreover,  according  to  the  tradition  in- 
volved in   the  Adapa  legend,  is  the  creator  of  mankind,   who 

1  I  follow  Zimmern's  rendition  of  the  line. 


MYTHS  AND   LEGENDS.  551 

prevents  his  creatures  from  gaining  immortality.  The  situation 
is  very  much  the  same  that  we  find  in  the  third  chapter  of 
Genesis,  when  God,  who  creates  man,  takes  precautions  lest 
mortals  eat  of  the  tree  of  life  and  '  live  forever.'  The  problem 
presented  by  the  Hebrew  and  Babylonian  stories  is  the  same: 
why  should  not  man,  who  is  descended  from  the  gods,  who  is 
created  in  the  likeness  of  a  god,  who  by  virtue  of  his  intellect 
can  peer  into  the  secrets  of  heaven  and  earth,  who  stands 
superior  to  the  rest  of  creation,  who,  to  use  the  psalmist's 
figure,  is  only  '  a  scale  lower  than  god,'  why  should  he  not  be 
like  the  gods  and  live  forever  ?  The  Hebrew  legend  solves 
the  problem  in  a  franker  way  than  does  the  Babylonian.  God, 
while  as  anxious  as  Ea  to  keep  man  from  eating  of  the  tree  of 
life,  cautions  Adam  against  the  act,  whereas  Ea  practises  a 
deception  in  order  to  prevent  man  from  eating.  That  in  both 
tales  eternal  life  is  contained  in  food  points  again  (as  we  have 
found  to  be  the  case  with  the  Biblical  narratives  of  Creation 
and  of  the  Deluge)  to  a  common  source  for  the  two  traditions. 
Similarly  the  phrase  'waters  of  life'  is  a  figure  of  speech  of  fre- 
quent occurrence  in  Biblical  literature  in  both  the  Old  and  the 
New  Testaments.  It  is  no  argument  against  a  common  source 
for  the  Hebrew  and  Babylonian  stories  explaining  how  man 
came  to  forego  immortality,  that  the  waters  of  life  should  be 
found  in  the  one  and  not  in  the  other.  If  we  assume  with 
Gunkel x  that  the  stories  embodied  in  the  first  chapters  of 
Genesis  were  long  current  among  the  Hebrews  before  they 
were  given  a  permanent  form,  the  adaptation  of  old  traditions 
to  an  entirely  new  order  of  beliefs  involves  a  casting  aside 
of  features  that  could  not  be  used  and  a  discarding  of  such  as 
seemed  superfluous.  The  striking  departures  in  the  case  of 
the  Hebrew  legends  from  their  Babylonian  counterparts  are  as 
full  of  significance  as  the  striking  agreements  between  the  two. 
The  departures  and  agreements  must  both  be  accounted  for. 

1  Schopfung  mid  Chaos,  pp.  i6cS  seq. 


552  hahylonian-assyrian  religion. 

For  both  there  are  reasons.  So,  to  emphasize  only  one  point, 
in  a  monotheistic  solution  of  the  problem  under  consideration, 
there  was  no  place  for  any  conflict  among  the  gods.  In  Genesis 
God  simply  wills  that  man  should  not  eat  of  the  tree  of  life. 
In  the  Adapa  legend  the  gods,  including  Anu,  are  willing  to 
grant  a  mortal  the  food  and  water  of  life,  simply  because  they 
believe  that  Ea,  the  creator  of  man,  wishes  him  to  have  it. 
Accordingly.  Anu  and  his  associates  are  represented  at  the 
close  of  the  legend  as  being  grieved  that  Adapa  should  have 
foregone  the  privilege. 

Ann  looked  at  him1  and  lamented  over  him.  '  Come,  Adapa,  why  didst 
thou  not  eat  and  not  drink  ?     Now  thou  canst  not  live.' 

Adapa  replies,  unconscious  of  the  deception  practised  on  him  : 
'  Ea,  my  lord,  commanded  me  not  to  eat  and  not  to  drink.' 

Adapa  returns  to  the  earth.  What  his  subsequent  fate  is  we 
do  not  know,  for  the  tablet  here  comes  to  an  end.  It  is  pos- 
sible that  he  learns  what  Ea  has  done,  and  that  the  god  gives 
him  the  reason  for  the  deception  practised.  A  scene  of  this 
kind  could  not  find  a  place  in  the  Hebrew  version  that  em- 
phasizes the  supreme  authority  of  a  power  besides  whom  none 
other  was  recognized.     God  acts  alone. 

Adam,  it  will  be  recalled,  after  eating  of  the  fruit  of  the  tree 
of  knowledge,  makes  a  garment  for  himself.  There  can  be  no 
doubt  that  there  is  a  close  connection  between  this  tradition 
and  the  feature  in  the  Adapa  legend,  where  Adapa,  who  has 
been  shown  the  'secrets  of  heaven  and  earth,'  -that  is,  has 
acquired  knowledge,  —  is  commanded  by  Ea  to  put  on  the  gar- 
ment that  is  offered  him.  The  anointing  oneself  with  oil, 
though  an  essential  part  of  the  toilet  in  the  ancient  and  modern 
Orient,  was  discarded  in  the  Hebrew  tale  as  a  superfluous 
feature.     The  idea  conveyed  by  the  use  of  oil  was  the  same  as 

1  Ad;ipa. 


MYTHS  AND   LEGENDS.  553 

the  one  indicated  in  clothing  one's  nakedness.  Both  are  sym- 
bols of  civilization  which  man  is  permitted  to  attain,  but  his 
development  stops  there.     He  cannot  secure  eternal  life. 

On  the  other  hand,  in  comparing  the  Hebrew  and  Babylonian 
versions  of  the  problem  of  knowledge  and  immortality,  one  can- 
not help  being  struck  by  the  pessimistic  tone  of  the  former  as 
against  the  more  consolatory  spirit  of  the  latter.  God  does  not 
want  man  to  attain  even  knowledge.1  He  secures  it  in  dis- 
obedience to  the  divine  will,  whereas  Ea  willingly  grants  him 
the  knowledge  of  all  there  is  in  heaven  and  earth.  In  this 
way  the  Hebrew  and  Babylonian  mind,  each  developed  the 
common  tradition  in  its  own  way. 

Leaving  the  comparison  aside  and  coming  back  for  a  moment 
to  the  Adapa  story,  it  is  interesting  to  observe  that  as  we  have 
two  tales,  both  intended  to  explain  the  position  of  Marduk  at 
the  head  of  the  pantheon,  the  one  by  making  him  the  conqueror 
of  Tiamat  and  forcing  from  Kingu  the  tablets  of  fate,  the  other 
by  representing  him  as  recovering  from  Zu  the  tablets  which 
En-lil,  who  originally  held  them,  could  not  protect  against  the 
storm-bird,  so  we  have  two  solutions  offered  for  the  problem  of 
immortality.  The  one  in  the  Gilgamesh  epic,  where  the  hero 
is  told  of  the  plant  of  life,  succeeds  in  finding  it,  but  as  he  is 
about  to  eat  the  '  food  '  loses  his  grasp  upon  it.  The  exertions 
of  man  are  in  vain.  True,  there  is  Parnapishtim,  a  mortal  who 
with  his  wife  has  obtained  immortal  life.  He  is  the  exception 
that  proves  the  rule.  Moreover,  it  is  Bel,  and  not  Ea,  who 
places  Parnapishtim  'at  the  confluence  of  streams,' there  to  live 
forever,  and  Bel  does  this  as  a  proof  of  his  pacification,  a  kind 
of  indemnity  offered  to  Ea  for  having  destroyed  the  offspring 
of  the  god  of  humanity.  The  Adapa  legend  attacks  the  prob- 
lem more  seriously.  Ea,  the  same  god  who  has  created  man, 
endowed  him  with  wisdom,  bestowed  all  manner  of  benefits 

1  The  phrase  '  knowledge  of  good  and  evil'  (Gen.  ii.  17)  is  simply  an  expression 
equivalent  to  our  'everything,'  or  to  the  Babylonian  '  secrets  of  heaven  and  earth.' 


554  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

upon  him,  Ea,  who  protects  humanity  against  Anu,  against  Bel, 
and  other  gods,  Ea  himself  deceives  man.  Evidently  the  lesson 
that  the  Babylonian  theologians  intended  to  teach  through  the 

\d apa  legend  was,  that  it  was  not  good  for  man  to  'live  forever.' 
Ea  himself  prevents  it.  That  is  the  point  of  the  story.  Anu 
and  the  other  gods  are  satisfied,  but  Ea  does  not  desire  it,  and 
Ea's  decision  cannot  be  to  the  disadvantage  of  mankind,  so 
dearly  beloved  by  him.  With  this  conclusion  humanity  must 
be  content       and  be  resigned  to  the  inevitable. 

Of  the  various  legends  that  we  have  been  considering,  the 
story  of  Adapa  is  perhaps  the  most  significant,  and  none  the 
less  so  for  the  manner  in  which  a  philosophical  problem  has 
been  grafted  on  to  a  nature-myth.  Adapa  is  made  to  play  the 
role  of  Marduk,  and  it  is  nothing  short  of  remarkable  that  at 
so  early  a  period  as  the  one  to  which  the  existence  of  the  story 
can  be  traced  back,  a  nature-myth  should  have  been  diverted 
from  its  original  purpose  and  adapted  to  the  end  that  the 
Adapa  story  serves  in  its  present  form.  The  process  involved 
in  this  adaptation  is  a  complicated  one.  The  story  serves  as 
an  evidence  of  the  intellectual  activity  displayed  in  the  schools 
of  theological  thought  that  must  have  flourished  for  many  cen- 
turies before  a  story  like  that  of  Adapa  could  have  been  pro- 
duced out  of  a  nature-myth.  Hardly  less  remarkable  is  it  that 
the  theologians  and  scribes  of  later  times  no  longer  understood 
the  story,  for  otherwise  they  would  not  have  identified  Adapa 
with  Marduk  through  the  superficial  circumstance  that  he  is 
introduced  into  the  story  instead  of  Marduk,  or  some  other  solar 
deity  allied  to  Marduk. 

The  Adapa  legend  takes  us  back  to  the  beginning  of  man's 
career  to  the  time  when,  as  in  the  early  chapters  of  Genesis. 
man  stood  closer  to  the  gods  than  at  a  later  time,  the  time 
when  there  was  a  constant  intercourse  between  man  and  the 
gods,  and  more  especially  between  man  and  his  protector,  Ea. 

The  story  forms  part  of  a  stock  of  traditions  of  which  we  have 


MYTHS  AND   LEGENDS.  555 

another  specimen  in  the  Eabani-Ukhat  episode,  incorporated  in 
the  Gilgamesh  epic.1  No  doubt  when  the  treasures  still  exist- 
ing in  the  British  Museum  shall  have  been  thoroughly  examined 
and  as  additional  remains  of  the  religious  literature  of  the  Baby- 
lonians will  be  brought  to  light,  we  will  find  further  traces  of 
these  early  traditions  as  well  as  of  other  myths.  Those  that  we 
have  discussed  in  this  and  in  the  preceding  chapters  illustrate 
the  system  adopted  by  the  priests  in  elaborating  these  tradi- 
tions and  myths  and  in  adapting  them  to  serve  as  illustrations 
of  certain  doctrines  and  beliefs.  We  may  also  feel  tolerably 
confident  that  the  religious  ideas  conveyed  through  these  vari- 
ous epics  and  legends  and  myths  fairly  represent  both  the  popular 
and  the  advanced  thought,  as  it  unfolded  itself  in  the  course  of 
time.  By  the  aid  of  these  specimens  of  the  religious  literature, 
we  have  been  enabled  to  analyze  the  views  of  the  Babylonians 
regarding  the  creation  of  the  world,  its  structure,  and  govern- 
ment. We  have  obtained  an  insight  into  the  problems  of  life 
and  death  which  engaged  the  Babylonian  thinkers,  and  we  have 
noted  some  of  the  solutions  offered  for  these  problems.  In  a 
consideration  of  the  views  held  by  the  Babylonians  and  Assyr- 
ians of  the  life  after  death,  to  which  we  now  turn,  it  will  again 
be  a  specimen  of  the  religious  literature  that  will  serve  as  our 
main  guide. 

1  See  pp.  476  scq.     Sayce  has  even  gone  so  far  as  to  suggest  an  identification  of 
Adapa  (by  reading  Adawa)  with  the  Biblical  Adam,  but  this  conjecture  is  untenable. 


CHAPTER   XXV. 

THE   VIEWS    OF   LIFE   AFTER   DEATH. 

The  problem  of  immortality,  we  have  seen,  engaged  the 
serious  attention  of  the  Babylonian  theologians.  While  the 
solutions  they  had  to  offer  could  hardly  have  been  satisfactory 
either  to  themselves  or  to  the  masses,  it  must  not  be  supposed 
that  the  denial  of  immortality  to  man  involved  the  total  extinc- 
tion of  conscious  vitality.  Neither  the  people  nor  the  leaders 
of  religious  thought  ever  faced  the  possibility  of  the  total  anni- 
hilation of  what  once  was  called  into  existence.  Death  was 
a  passage  to  another  kind  of  life,  and  the  denial  of  immor- 
tality merely  emphasized  the  impossibility  of  escaping  the 
change  in  existence  brought  about  by  death.  The  gods  alone 
do  not  pass  from  one  phase  of  existence  to  the  other.  Death 
was  mysterious,  but  not  more  mysterious  than  life.  The 
Babylonian  religion  does  not  transcend  the  stage  of  belief, 
characteristic  of  primitive  culture  everywhere,  which  cannot 
conceive  of  the  possibility  of  life  coming  to  an  absolute  end. 
Life  of  some  kind  and  in  some  form  was  always  presupposed. 
So  far  as  man  was  concerned,  created  by  some  god,-  Bel,  Ea, 
Aiurii,  or  Ishtar,  according  to  the  various  traditions  that  were 
current,1  no  divine  fiat  could  wipe  out  what  was  endowed 
with  life  and  the  power  of  reproduction. 

No  doubt,  the  impossibility  for  the  individual  to  conceive  of 
himself  as  forever  deprived  of  consciousness,  was  at  the  bottom 
of  the  primitive  theory  of  the  perpetuity  of  existence  in  some 
form.  Among  ancient  religions,  Buddhism  alone  frees  itself 
from  this  theory  and  unfolds  a  bold  doctrine  of  the  possibility 

above,  p.  44S. 


THE   VIEWS   OE  LIFE  AFTER  DEATH.  557 

of  a  complete  annihilation.  The  question,  however,  whether 
the  continuity  of  existence  was  a  blessing  or  a  curse  was  raised 
by  many  ancient  nations.  The  Babylonians  are  among  these 
who  are  inclined  to  take  a  gloomy  view  of  the  passage  from 
this  world  to  the  existence  in  store  for  humanity  after  death, 
and  the  religious  leaders  were  either  powerless  or  disinclined 
to  controvert  this  view. 


Location  and  Names  of  the  Gathering  Place  of  the 

Dead. 

We  have  already  had  occasion x  to  refer  to  the  great  cave 
underneath  the  earth  in  which  the  dead  were  supposed  to 
dwell,  and  since  the  earth  itself  was  regarded  as  a  mountain, 
the  cave  is  pictured  as  a  hollow  within,  or  rather  underneath,  a 
mountain.  A  conception  of  this  kind  must  have  arisen  among 
a  people  that  was  once  familiar  with  a  mountainous  district. 
The  settlers  of  the  Euphrates  Valley  brought  the  belief  with 
them  from  an  earlier  mountain  home.  The  cave,  moreover, 
points  to  cave-dwelling  and  to  cave-burial  as  conditions  that 
prevailed  at  one  time  among  the  populace,  precisely  as  the 
imitation  of  the  mountain  with  its  caves  in  the  case  of  the 
Egyptian  pyramids,  is  due  to  similar  influences.  To  this  cave 
various  names  are  assigned  in  the  literature  of  the  Babylo- 
nians,—  some  of  popular  origin,  others  reflecting  scholastic 
views.  The  most  common  name  is  Aralu.2  We  also  find  the 
term  '  house  of  Aralu.'3  The  etymology  of  the  term  is  obscure. 
Aralu  was  pictured  as  a  vast  place,  dark  and  gloomy.  It  is 
sometimes  called  a  land,  sometimes  a  great  house.  The  approach 
to  it  was  difficult.      It  lay  in  the  lowest  part  of  the  mountain 

1  See  pp.  4S7,  4S9,  511,  512.  2  Or  Arallu. 

SIIR.  61,  iS.  Jensen,  Kosmologie,  p.  220,  takes  this  as  the  name  of  a  temple;  hut, 
since  Aralu  was  pictured  as  a  '  great  house,'  there  is  no  reason  why  the  designation 
should  not  refer  to  the  nether  world. 


558  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

that  represented  the  earth,  not  far  from  the  hollow  underneath 
the  mountain  into  which  the  '  Apsu  '  flowed.  Surrounded  by 
seven  walls  and  strongly  guarded,  it  was  a  place  to  which  no 
living  person  could  go  and  from  which  no  mortal  could  ever 
depart  after  once  entering  it.  To  Aralu  all  went  whose  exis! 
ence  in  this  world  had  come  to  an  end.  Another  name  which 
specifies  the  relationship  of  Aralii  to  the  world  is  Ekur  or 
'  mountain  house'  of  the  dead.  Ekur  is  one  of  the  names  for 
the  earth,1  but  is  applied  more  particularly  to  that  part  of  the 
mountain,  also  known  as  Kharsag2-kurkura,  i.e.,  'the  mountain 
of  all  lands '  where  the  gods  were  born.  Before  the  later  specu- 
lative view  was  developed,  according  to  which  the  gods,  or 
most  of  them,  have  their  seats  in  heaven,3  it  was  on  this  moun- 
tain also  that  the  gods  were  supposed  to  dwell.  Hence  Ekur 
became  also  one  of  the  names  for  temple,4  as  the  seat  of  a  god. 
The  dwelling  of  the  dead  was  regarded  as  a  part  of  the  'great 
mountain.'  It  belonged  to  Ekur,  and  the  fact  that  it  was  des- 
ignated simply  as  Ekur,5  is  a  valuable  indication  that  the  dead 
were  brought  into  close  association  with  the  gods.  This  asso- 
ciation is  also  indicated  by  the  later  use  of  Aralu  as  the  designa- 
tion of  the  mountain  within  which  the  district  of  the  dead,  Aralu 
proper,  lay0  -synonymous,  therefore,  with  Ekur.  We  shall 
see  in  the  course  of  this  chapter  that  the  dead  are  placed  even 
more  than  the  living  under  the  direct  supervision  of  the  gods. 

A  third  name  for  the  nether  world  which  conveys  an  impor- 
tant addition  to  the  views  held  regarding  the  dead,  was  Shualu. 
Jensen,  it   is  true,  following  ]5ertin,  questions  the  existence  of 

e  the  admirable  argument  in  Jensen,  Kosmologie,  pp.  185-195. 
-  Or,  more  fully,  Kharsag-gal-kurkura,  'great  mountain  of  all  lands.' 
■  458.  I  See  the  following  chapter. 

the  passages  in  Jeremias'  Die  Babylonisch-Assyrischen  Vorstellungen  vom 
Lebcti  nach  don  Tode,  p.  62. 

n  Annals.  1.  156.     Jensen's  interpretation   of  the    passage    {Kosmologie, 
is  forced,  as  is  also   his  explanation  oi    UK.  51,  ua,  where  a  mountain 
AralQ  is  ,  learly  designated. 


THE   VIEWS   OE  LIEE   A  EYE  A'   DEATH.  559 

this  term  in  Babylonian,1  but  one  does  not  see  how  the  evi- 
dence of  the  passages  in  the  lexicographical  tablets  can  be  set 
aside  in  the  way  that  he  proposes.  Zimmern  2  does  not  appear 
to  be  convinced  by  Jensen's  arguments  and  regards  the  ques- 
tion as  an  open  one.  Jensen's  method  of  disposing  of  Shualu, 
besides  being  open  to  serious  objections,  fails  to  account  for 
the  fact  that  Shualu  is  brought  into  association  with  various 
Babylonian  terms  and  ideographs  for  the  grave.3  This  cannot 
be  accidental.  That  the  term  has  hitherto  been  found  only  in 
lexicographical  tablets  need  not  surprise  us.  Aralu,  too,  is  of 
rare  occurrence  in  the  religious  texts.  The  priests  appear 
to  avoid  the  names  for  the  nether  world,  which  were  of  ill 
omen,  and  preferred  to  describe  the  place  by  some  epithet,  as 
'land  without  return,'  or  'dark  dwelling,'  or  'great  city,'  and 
the  like.  Of  such  descriptive  terms  we  have  a  large  number.4 
The  stem  underlying  Shualu  signifies  '  to  ask.'  Shualu  is  a 
place  of  inquiry,5  and  the  inquiry  meant  is  of  the  nature  of  a 
religious  oracle.  The  name,  accordingly,  is  an  indication  of 
the  power  accorded  to  the  dead,  to  aid  the  living  by  furnishing 
them  with  answers  to  questions,  just  as  the  gods  furnish 
oracles  through  the  mediation  of  the  priests.0  The  Old  Testa- 
ment supplies  us  with  an  admirable  illustration  of  the  method 
of  obtaining  oracles  through  the  dead.  Saul,  when  he  desires 
to  know  what  the  outcome  of  a  battle  is  to  be,  seeks  out  a 
sorceress,  and  through  her  calls  up  the  dead  Samuel 7  and  puts 

1  Kosmologie,  pp.  222-224. 

2  GunkePs  Schopfung  und  Chaos,  p.  154,  note  5. 

3  In  an  article  on  '  Shualu'  published  in  the  American  Journal  of  Semitic  Lan- 
guages (xiv.),  I  have  set  forth  my  reasons  for  accepting  this  word  as  .1  Babylonian 
term  for  the  nether  world. 

*  In  the  later  portions  of  the  Old  Testament,  the  use  of  Sheol  is  also  avoided. 
See  the  passages  in  Schwally,  Das  Lebcn  nach  Jem  Tode  nach  Jen  Vorstellungen 
des  Altcn  Israels,  pp.  59,  60. 

5  Not  '  Ort  der  Entscheidung,'  as  Jeremias,  id.  p.  109,  proposes. 

6  See  above,  p.  329. 

7  I  Sam.  xxviii.  11. 


560  [BYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

the  question  to  him.  Similarly,  in  the  Gilgamesh  epic,  the  hero, 
with  the  aid  of  Nergal,  obtains  a  sight  of  Eabani1  and  plies 
him  with  questions.  The  belief,  therefore,  in  this  power  of  the 
dead  was  common  to  Babylonians  and  Hebrews,  and,  no  doubt, 
was  shared  by  other  branches  of  the  Semites.  It  is  natural, 
therefore,  to  find  the  Babylonian  term  Shualu  paralleled  by  the 
Hebrew  Sheol,  which  is  the  common  designation  in  the  Old 
Testament  for  the  dwelling-place  of  the  dead.2  How  wide- 
spread the  custom  was  among  Babylonians  of  inquiring  '  through 
the  living  of  the  dead'3  it  is  difficult,  in  default  of  satisfactory 
evidence,  to  say.  The  growing  power  of  the  priests  as  medi- 
ators between  men  and  gods  must  have  acted  as  a  check  to 
such  practices.  The  priests,  as  the  inquirers,4  naturally  pro- 
ceeded  direct  to  the  particular  god  whose  representative  they 
claimed  to  be,  and  the  development  of  an  elaborate  ceremonial 
in  the  temples  in  connection  with  the  oracles5  was  a  further 
factor  that  must  have  influenced  the  gradual  abandonment  of 
the  custom,  at  least  as  an  element  of  the  official  cult.  More- 
over, the  belief  itself  belongs  in  the  domain  of  ancestor  wor- 
ship, and  in  historical  times  we  find  but  little  trace  of  such 
worship  among  the  Babylonians.  We  may,  therefore,  associate 
the  custom  with  the  earliest  period  of  the  Babylonian  religion. 
This  view  carries  with  it  the  antiquity  of  the  term  Shualu. 
Like  Aralu  and  the  designation  Kkur,  it  embodies  the  close 
association  of  the  dead  with  the  gods.  The  dead  not  only 
dwell  near  the  gods,  but,  like  the  gods,  they  can  direct  the 
affairs  of  mankind.  Their  answers  to  questions  put  to  them 
have  divine  justification.     From  this  view  of  the  dead  to  the 

:     '.  i  '■  :  Isaiah,  viii.  19. 

-  See  Schwally,  ib.  pp.  59-  6  ;. 

ol  the  names  for  the  priest  in  Babylonia  is  Sha'ilu,  i.e.,  'inquirer,'  and  the 

Hebrew  word  ShS'el  is  similarly  used  in  a  few  passages  ol  the  Old 

..  Deut.  xviii.  11  ;   Miiah,  vii.  3.    See  an  article  by  the  writer  on"  The 

al  and  the  Name  ol  Samuel,"  in  a  forthcoming  number  of  the  Journal  of 

Biblical  Literal  me.  •"■  See  above,  pp.  333  scij. 

4 


THE   VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH.  561 

deification  of   the  latter  is  but  a  short  step.     It  does  not,  of 
course,  follow,  from  the  fact  that  Shualu  or  Sheol  is  the  place 
of  '  oracles,'  that  all  the  dead  have  the  power  to  furnish  oracles 
or  can  be  invoked  for  this  purpose.     Correspondingly,  if  we 
find  that  the  Babylonians  did  deify  their  dead,  it  does  not  mean 
that  at  one  time  all  the  dead  were  regarded  as  gods.     Popular 
legends  are  concerned  only  with  the  heroes,  with  the  popular 
favorites  —  not  with  the  great  masses.     Eabani,  who  appears 
to  Gilgamesh,  is  a  hero,  and  so  is  Samuel.     As  a  matter  of  fact, 
we  have   so  far   only  found  evidence  that  the  ancient  rulers 
whose  memory  lingered  in  the  minds  of  the  people  were  re- 
garded by  later  generations  as  gods.     So  the  names  of  Dungi 
and  Gudea1  are  written  on  tablets  that  belong  to  the  centuries 
immediately  following  their  reign,  with  the  determinative  that 
is  placed  before  the  names  of  gods.     Festivals  were  celebrated 
in  honor  of  these  kings,  sacrifices  were  offered  to  them,  and  their 
images  were  placed  in  temples.2    Again,  Gimil-Sin  (c.  2500  B.C.), 
of  the   second   dynasty  of   Ur,   appears   to  have  been  deified 
during  his  lifetime,  and  there  was  a  temple  in  Lagash  which 
was  named  after  him.3     No  doubt  other  kings  will  be  found 
who  were  similarly  honored.     We  may  expect  to  come  across  a 
god  Hammurabi  some  day.     Gilgamesh  is,  as  we  have  seen,  a 
historical  personage  whose  career  has  been  so  thoroughly  amal- 
gamated with  nature-myths  that  he  ends  by  becoming  a  solar 
deity  who  is  invoked  in  incantations. 

The  tendency  to  connect  legendary  and  mythical  incidents 
with  ancient  rulers  is  part  and  parcel  of  this  process  of  deifica- 
tion.    Of  an  ancient  king,  Sargon,4  a  story  was  related  how  he 

1  See  p.  167. 

2  See  above,  p.  167,  and  Scheil,  Le  Culte  de  Gudea,etc.  {JRecueil  des   Travaux, 

xviii.  64  scg.) 

3  Thureau-Dangin,  Le  Culte  des  Rois  dans  la  periode  Prebabylonienne  (Recueil 

des  Travaux,  etc.,  xix.  4S6). 

4  See  above,  p.  36.  The  text  is  published  MR.  pi.  4,  no.  7-  Recently,  Mr. 
Pinches  has  published  a  variant  version  of  this  story  (Proc.  Soc.  Bibl.  Arch,  xviii. 
257,  258). 


562  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

was  exposed  in  a  boat,  and,  'knowing  neither  father  nor  mother,' 
was  found  by  a  ferryman.  The  exploits  of  this  king  and  of  his 
successor,  Naram-Sin,  were  incorporated  in  an  omen  text1  — 
a  circumstance  that  again  illustrates  how  the  popular  fancy 
connected  the  heroes  of  the  past  with  its  religious  interests. 
Still,  there  is  no  more  reason  to  question  the  historical  reality 
of  Sargon  2  than  to  question  the  existence  of  Moses,  because  a 
story  of  his  early  youth  is  narrated  in  Exodus3  which  forms  a 
curious  parallel  to  the  Sargon  legend,  or  to  question  the  exist- 
ence of  a  personage  by  the  name  of  Abraham,  because  an 
Abrahamitic  cult  arose  that  continues  to  the  present  day.4 

This  close  association  of  the  dead  with  the  gods,  upon  which 
the  deification  of  the  dead  rests,  may  be  regarded  as  a  legacy 
of  the  earliest  period  of  the  Babylonian  religion,  of  the  time  when 
the  intercourse  between  the  gods  and  the  living  was  also  direct. 
The  belief  and  rites  connected  with  the  dead  constitute  the 
most  conservative  elements  in  the  religion  of  a  people.  The 
organized  cult  affects  the  living  chiefly.  So  far  as  the  latter 
are  concerned,  the  rise  of  a  priesthood  to  whom  the  religious 
needs  of  the  people  are  entrusted,  removes  the  living  from  that 
immediate  contact  with  the  gods  which  we  note  in  the  tradi- 
tions of  every  people  regarding  the  beginnings  of  mankind. 
The  priests  have  no  power  over  the  dead.  The  dead  require 
no  '  mediator.'  Hence,  those  who  dwell  in  Aralu  return  to  the 
early  state  of  mankind  when  gods  and  mankind  '  walked  to- 
gether.' 

Another  name  that  is  of  frequent  occurrence  in  religious 
texts  is  Kigallu,  which  describes  the  nether  world  as  a  district 

1  IVK. 

-  In  view  Hi  recent  discussions  of  the  subject,  it  is  important  to  note  that  Tiele 
i.-,  ognized  that  Saigon  was  a  historical  personage.     See  his 
remarks,  Babyl.    tssyr.  GescA.,  p.  112. 
ipter  ii. 
1  See  W  interbotham, "  The  Cult  of  Father  Abraham,"  in  the  Expositor,  1S97,  pp. 


THE   VIEWS   OE  LIEE   AFTER   DEATH.  563 

of  great  extent,  situated  within  the  earth.1  The  chief  goddess 
of  the  nether  world  is  commonly  known  as  the  '  queen  of 
Kigallu.'  Furthermore,  Irkalla,  which  was  interpreted  by  the 
Babylonian  theologians  as  'great  city'  (or  'district'),  is  used 
both  as  a  designation  for  the  dwelling-place  of  the  dead  and 
for  the  consort  of  the  queen  of  Aralu.2 

Beside  the  names  for  the  nether  world  above  discussed,  a 
large  number  of  epithets  and  metaphors  are  found  in  the  reli- 
gious texts.  The  place  to  which  the  dead  go  is  called  the 
'dark  dwelling,'  'the  land  from  which  there  is  no  return,' '  house 
of  death,'  'the  great  city,'  'the  deep  land,'  and,  since  Nergal, 
the  ruler  of  the  lower  world,  was  the  patron  of  the  city  Cuthah  ;; 
(or  Kutu),  the  name  Cuthah  was  also  used  as  a  designation  for 
Aralu.  Lastly,  it  is  interesting  to  note  that  in  poetical  usage 
the  words  for  '  grave  ' 4  were  also  employed  to  describe  the 
nether  world.  The  question  raised  by  this  metaphor  as  to  the 
relationship  between  the  grave  and  the  lower  world  can  best 
be  discussed  when  we  come  to  consider  the  funeral  rites.5 


The  Condition  of  the  Dead  and  the  Impossibility  of 

an  Escape  from  Aralu. 

Among  the  remains  of  Babylonian  literature  there  is  a  re- 
markable production,  which  furnishes  us  with  an  admirable  view 
of  the  fate  in  store  for  those  who  have  left  this  world/'  The  com- 
position is  based  upon  a  nature-myth,  symbolizing  the  change 
of  seasons.  Ishtar,  the  great  mother  goddess,  the  goddess  of 
fertility  who  produces  vegetation,  is,  as  we  saw  in  the  Gilga- 

1  See  Jensen's  Kosmologic,  p.  215,  and  Meissner,  Altbabylonisches  Privatreckt, 
p.  21.  The  word  is  used  for  the  foundation  of  a  building,  and  is  an  indication, 
therefore,  of  the  great  depth  at  which  the  nether  world  was  placed. 

2  See  below,  p.  567,  and  Jensen's  Kosmologie,  p.  259. 

3  See  pp.  65,  66.  4  Kabrn  and  Gegunu  ('  dark  place'). 

5  See  also  below,  pp.  566,  567.         6  Published  IV  Rawlinson  (2d  edition),   pi.  31, 


564  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

mesh  epic,1  also  the  one  who  brings  about  the  decline  of 
vegetation.  The  change  in  nature  that  takes  place  after  the 
summer  solstice  is  passed  and  the  crops  have  ripened  was 
variously  interpreted.  According  to  one,  and,  as  it  would 
seem,  the  favorite,  tradition,  the  goddess  is  represented  as 
herself  destroying  the  solar  deity,  Tammuz,  whom  she  had 
chosen  as  a  consort.  Repentant  and  weeping,  Ishtar  passes 
to  the  lower  world  in  search  of  her  youthful  husband,  —  the 
symbol  of  the  sun  on  its  approach  to  the  summer  solstice. 
While  Ishtar  is  in  the  lower  world,  all  fertility  ceases,  in  the 
fields,  as  well  as  in  the  animal  kingdom.  At  last  Ishtar  re- 
appears, and  nature  is  joyous  once  more.  In  the  Semitic 
Orient  there  are  only  two  seasons  : 2  winter,  or  the  rainy 
season,  and  summer,  or  the  dry  season.  The  myth  was,  there- 
fore, a  symbol  of  the  great  contrast  that  the  two  seasons  pre- 
sented to  one  another.  Under  various  forms  and  numerous 
disguises,  we  find  the  myth  among  several  branches  of  the 
Semites,  as  well  as  in  Egypt  and  among  Aryans  who  came  into 
contact  with  Semitic  ideas.3  A  festival  celebrated  in  honor 
of  Tammuz  by  the  Babylonians  is  one  expression  of  many  that 
the  myth  received.  The  designation  of  the  sixth  month  as 
"  the  mission  of  Ishtar  "  4  is  another.  This  myth  was  adapted 
by  (he  theologians  to  illustrate  the  doctrines  that  were  developed 
regarding  the  kind  of  existence  led  by  the  dead.  The  literary 
method  adopted  is  the  same  that  characterizes  the  elaboration 
of  the  Adapa  myth  and  of  the  myths  incorporated  into  the  Gil- 
gamesh  epic.  The  story  forms  the  point  of  departure,  but  its 
original  purport  is  set  aside  to  a  greater  or  less  degree,  neces- 
sary modifications  are  introduced,  and  the  moral  or  lesson  is 

1  See  p.  i 

'-  The  (  Mil   Testament  recognizes  only  two  seasons,  summer  and  winter.     See,  e.g., 
I  ■'II.  viii.  22. 

Hie  discussion  in  Robertson  Smith's  Religions  of  the  Semites,  pp.  391-394; 
and  also  Farnall,  The  Cults  of  the  Greek  States,  ii.  644-649. 

4  Sec  above,  p.  484. 


THE   VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH.  565 

distinctly  indicated.  In  the  case  of  the  production  that  we  are 
about  to  consider,  the  story  of  Ishtar's  visit  to  the  nether  world 
is  told  —  perhaps  by  a  priest — to  a  person  who  seeks  consola- 
tion. A  dear  relative  has  departed  this  life,  and  a  survivor,  —  a 
brother,  apparently,  —  is  anxious  to  know  whether  the  dead  will 
ever  come  back  again.  The  situation  reminds  one  of  Gilgamesh 
seeking  out  Eabani,1  with  this  difference  :  that,  whereas  Gilga- 
mesh, aided  by  Nergal,  is  accorded  a  sight  of  his  friend,  the  or- 
dinary mourner  must  content  himself  with  the  answer  given  to 
him.  But  what  Gilgamesh  is  not  permitted  to  hear,2  the  mourner 
is  told.  A  description  is  given  him  of  how  the  dead  fare  in  Aralu. 
The  problem,  however,  is  somewhat  different  in  the  story  of 
the  descent  of  Ishtar,  from  the  one  propounded  in  the  twelfth 
tablet  of  the  Gilgamesh  epic.  The  question  uppermost  in  the 
mind  of  the  mourner  is  "  Will  the  dead  return  ?  "  The  condi- 
tion of  the  dead,  which  is  most  prominent  in  Gilgamesh's  mind, 
is  secondary.  Both  questions,  however,  are  answered,  and 
both  answers  are  hopelessly  sad.  The  nether  world  is  joyless. 
Even  the  goddess  Ishtar  is  badly  treated  upon  entering  it. 
The  place  is  synonymous  with  inactivity  and  decay  ;  and,  though 
the  goddess  returns,  the  conclusion  drawn  is  that  the  exception 
proves  the  inexorable  rule.  A  goddess  may  escape,  but  mortals 
are  doomed  to  everlasting  sojourn,  or  rather  imprisonment,  in  the 
realm  presided  over  by  Allatu  and  her  consort  Nergal.  The  tale 
begins  with  a  description  of  the  land  to  which  Ishtar  proceeds : 

To  the  land  whence  there  is  no  return,  the  land  of  darkness  (?)  3 
Ishtar,  the  daughter  of  Sin,  turned  her  mind, 

1  See  above,  p.  510. 

2  I.e.,  according  to  one  version  (p.  511).  Another  version  of  this  part  of  the  Gil- 
gamesh epfc,  which,  however,  is  influenced  by  the  tale  of  Ishtar's  visit,  is  published  in 
Haupt's  Nimrodefos,  pp.  16-19.  In  this  version  Eabani  gives  Gilgamesh  a  descrip- 
tion of  Aralii,  which  tallies  with  the  one  found  in  the  Ishtar  tale. 

3  Text  defective.  Jeremias'  suggestion,  "  the  land  that  thou  knowest,"  misses  the 
point.  The  person  addressed  does  not  know  the  land.  'Decay'  is  Schrader's 
conjecture  (Die  Hollcnfahrt  der  I  star,  p.  24).  See  Haupt's  Nimrodcpos,  pp.  17, 
40,  and  Delitzsch's  Assyr.  Worterbuch,  p.  321,  note. 


BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

The  daughter  of  Sin  turned  her  mind; 

To  1 1  of  darkness,  the  dwelling  of  Irkalla, 

I  o  the  house  whence  no  one  issues  who  has  once  entered  it. 
To  the  road  from  which  there  is  no  return,  when  once  it  has  been  trodden. 
To  the  house  whose  inhabitants1  are  deprived  of  light. 
The  place  where  dust  is  their-  nourishment,  their  food  clay. 

I'ln  \     have  no  light,  dwelling  in  dense  darkness. 

And  they  are  clothed  like  birds,  in  a  garment  of  feathers; 

Where  over  gate  and  bolt,  dust  is  scattered. 

Ishtar,  it  will  be  observed,  is  here  called  the  daughter  of  the 
moon-god,  whereas  in  the  Gilgamesh  epic  she  appears  as  the 
daughter  of  Anu,  the  god  of  heaven.  Both  designations  reflect 
the  views  developed  in  the  schools,  and  prove  that  the  story 
has  been  produced  under  scholastic  influences.  The  goddess 
has  her  place  in  the  heavens,  in  the  planet  bearing  her  name, 
and  the  designation  of  this  planet  as  the  daughter  of  Sin 
can  only  be  understood  in  connection  with  the  astronomical 
system,  in  which  the  moon  plays  so  prominent  a  role  4  and 
becomes  the  father  of  all  the  great  gods  (except  Shamash)  who 
constitute  the  lesser  luminaries  of  the  night. 

Irkalla  is  one  of  the  names  5  for  a  god  of  the  nether  world, 
who  is  regarded  as  the  associate  of  Allatu.  The  dwelling  is 
elsewhere  spoken  of  as  a  'great  palace'  in  which  Allatu  and 
lur  consort  Nergal  have  their  thrones.  A  gloomier  place 
than  the  one  described  in  these  opening  lines  of  the  story 
cannot  well  be  imagined.  The  picture  reflects  the  popular 
views,  and  up  to  this  point,  the  doctrines  of  the  school  are 
in  agreement  with  the  early  beliefs.  The  description  of  the 
lower  world  is  evidently  suggested  by  the  grave  or  the  cave 
in  which  the  dead  were  laid.  The  reference  to  dust  and  clay 
as  the  food  of  the  dead  shows  that  the  doctrine  taught  in  the 
Gilgamesh  epic,0  of  man's  being  formed  of  clay  and  returning 

1  Lit., '  tin   one  who  lias  entered  it.'  4  See  p.  461. 

-  /.< .,  of  the  inhabitants.  5  See  below,  p.  591. 

he  inhabitants.  6  See  pp.  502,  511. 


THE   VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH.  567 

to  clay,  was  the  common  one.  This  view  helps  us  to  under- 
stand how  the  words  for  grave  came  to  be  used  as  synonyms 
for  the  nether  world.  The  dead  being  placed  below  the  earth, 
they  were  actually  conveyed  within  the  realm  of  which  Aralu 
was  a  part,  and  since  it  became  customary  for  the  Babylonians 
to  bury  their  dead  together,  the  cities  of  the  dead  that  thus 
arose  could  easily  be  imagined  to  constitute  the  kingdom  pre- 
sided over  by  Allatu  and  Nergal.  At  this  point,  however,  the 
speculations  of  the  schools  begin  to  diverge  from  the  popular 
notions.  We  may  well  question  whether  the  Babylonian  popu- 
lace ever  attempted  to  make  clear  to  itself  in  what  form  the 
dead  continued  their  existence.  It  may  be  that  the  argu- 
ment from  dreams,  as  the  basis  for  the  primitive  belief  in  the 
continuation  of  life,  in  some  form,  after  death  has  been  too  hard 
pressed,1  but  certainly  the  appearance  of  the  dead  in  the  dreams 
of  the  living  must  have  produced  a  profound  impression,  and 
since  the  dead  appeared  in  the  same  form  that  they  had  while 
alive,  the  conclusion  was  natural  that,  even  though  the  body 
decayed,  a  vague  outline  remained  that  bore  the  same  relation 
to  the  corpus  as  the  shadow  to  the  figure  casting  it.  Two  re- 
markable chapters  in  the  Old  Testament 2  illustrate  this  popu- 
lar view  prevailing  in  Babylonia,  as  to  the  condition  of  the  dead 
in  the  nether  world.  The  prophets  Isaiah  and  Ezekiel  both 
portray  the  dead  as  having  the  same  form  that  they  possessed 
while  alive.  The  kings  have  their  crowns  on  their  heads ;  the 
warriors  lie  with  their  swords  girded  about  them.  The  dead 
Eabani,  it  will  be  recalled,  appears  to  Gilgamesh  and  is  at  once 
recognized  by  the  latter.  What  distinguishes  the  dead  from  the 
living  is  their  inactivity.  They  lie  in  Aralu  without  doing  any- 
thing. Everything  there  is  in  a  state  of  neglect  and  decay.  The 
dead  can  speak,  but  the  Babylonians  probably  believed,  like  the 

1  Particularly  by  Herbert  Spencer  and  his  followers. 

2  Isaiah,  xiv.  9-20,  and  Ezekiel,  xxxii.  18-31.     In  Isaiah,  the  Babylonian  Aralu  is 
specifically  described,  while  Ezekiel  writes  under  the  influence  of  Babylonian  ideas. 


568  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Hebrews,  that  the  dead  talk  in  whispers,  or  chirp  like  birds.1 
The  dead  are  weak,1'  and,  therefore,  unless  others  attend  to  their 
needs,  they  suffer  pangs  of  hunger,  or  must  content  themselves 
with  '  dust  and  clay  '  as  their  food.  Tender  care  during  the 
last  moments  of  life  was  essential  to  comparative  well-being  in 
A.ralu.8  The  person  who  goes  to  Aralii  in  sorrow  and  neglect 
will  continue  sorrowful  and  neglected. 

The  theologians,  while  accepting  these  views  in  general, 
passed  beyond  them  in  an  important  particular.  They  could 
not  reconcile  the  evident  dissolution  of  the  body  with  a  continu- 
ation of  even  a  shadowy  outline.  When  a  man  died,  the 
'spirit,'  which,  according  to  the  animistic  theory,  lodged  some- 
where within  the  body  and  produced  the  manifestations  of  life, 
sought  for  refuge  in  some  other  substance.  The  ease  with 
which  birds  moved  from  one  place  to  another  suggested  these 
beings  as  the  ones  in  which  the  dislodged  spirit  found  a  home. 
The  Babylonian  thinkers  were  not  alone  in  developing  the 
view  that  the  dead  assumed  the  form  of  birds.  Parallels  to 
the  pictures  of  the  dead  in  the  story  of  Ishtar's  descent  may 
be  found  in  Egypt  and  elsewhere.4  But  what  is  important  for 
our  purposes  is  the  consideration  that,  in  Babylonia  at  least, 
the  view  in  question  is  not  the  popular  one,  but  the  result  of 
speculations  about  a  problem  that  appeals  only. to  those  who 
make  the  attempt,  at  least,  to  clarify  their  ideas  regarding  the 
mystery  of  death.  The  next  section  of  the  story  affords  us  a 
picture  of  the  entrance  to  Aralu  : 

When  Ishtar  arrived  at  the  gate  of  the  land  without  return, 
She  spoke  to  the  watchman  of  the  gate  : 
II"!   watchman  — open  thy  gate. 

1  Isaiah,  viii.   19. 

2  The  Hebrew  word  for  'the  d    id         ISim,  conveys  this  idea. 

:i  Sec  p. 

ara  Y.  Stevenson,  "  On  Certain  Symbols  used  in  the  Decoration  of  Some 
Potsherds  from  Daphne  and  Naukratis  "  (Philadelphia,  1892),  p.  8. 


THE   VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH.  569 

Open  thy  gate  that  I  may  enter. 

If  thou  dost  not  open  the  gate,  if  thou  refusest  me  admission, 

I  will  smash  the  door,  break  the  bolt. 

I  will  smash  the  threshold,  force  open  the  portals. 

I  will  raise  up  the  dead  to  eat  the  living 

Until  the  dead  outnumber  the  living. 

The  entrance  to  the  nether  world  is  strongly  guarded.  From 
other  sources  we  learn  that  there  was  a  '  spy  '  —  perhaps  iden- 
tical with  the  watchman  —  stationed  at  the,  portal  of  the  lower 
world,  who  reports  all  happenings  to  the  queen  Allatu  through 
Namtar,  the  god  (or  spirit)  of  pestilence.  The  watchman  is  to 
prevent  the  living  from  entering,  and  also  the  dead  from 
escaping. 

The  violence  of  Ishtar  is  an  interesting  touch  in  the  narra- 
tive. As  a  goddess,  she  resents  any  opposition  to  her  desires. 
Her  anxiety  to  enter  Aralu  indicates  that  the  original  form  of 
the  myth,  which  must  have  represented  the  descent  as  forced 
and  not  voluntary,  has  been  modified  by  the  introduction  of  a 
new  factor,  —  the  search  for  her  dead  consort,  Tammuz.  The 
character  of  Ishtar  as  the  goddess  of  war  a  may  also  have  influ- 
enced this  portrayal  of  her  rage.  In  her  violence,  she  threatens 
a  conflict  between  the  dead  and  the  living.  The  former  will 
destroy2  the  latter,  as  a  victorious  army  butchers  the  hostile  host. 
The  watchman  endeavors  to  pacify  the  enraged  Ishtar : 

The  watchman  opened  his  mouth  and  spoke. 

Spoke  to  the  great  Ishtar : 

Hold,  O  mistress,  do  not  destroy  them.3 

I  will  go  Snd  mention  thy  name  to  the  queen  Allatu. 

Allatu  is  grieved  upon  hearing  the  news  of  Ishtar's  arrival,  for 
Ishtar's  disappearance  from  the  world  means  death. 

1  See  above,  p.  S3. 

2  '  Eating  '  appears  to  be  a  metaphor  for  destruction  in  general. 

3  The  portals  (?). 


570  //.  //.'  J 7. OMAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

I  must  weep  for  the  masters  who  forsake  their  consorts. 

I  must  weep  for  the  wives  who  are  torn  from  their  husbands'  side. 

For  the  children  I  must  weep  who  are  snatched  away  (?)  before  their  time. 

<  ro,  watchman,  open  thy  gate. 

I  leal  with  hei  • rding  to  the  ancient  laws. 

The  scene  that  follows  embodies,  again,  views  of  the  nether 
world  as  developed  in  the  schools.  Corresponding  to  the  seven 
zones  surrounding  the  earth,1  the  nether  world  is  pictured  as 
enclosed  by  sewn  gates.  Through  these  Ishtar  must  pass, 
before  she  is  ushered  into  the  presence  of  Allatu. 

The  watchman  went  and  opened  his  gate. 
Enter,  (  >  mistress,  welcome  in  Cuthah.2 
I  he  great  house3  of  the  land  without  return  greets  thee.4 
Through  the  first  gate  he  led  her,  and  boldly  removed  the  great  crown  from 

her  head. 
Why,  (  )  watchman,  dost  thou  remove  the  great  crown  from  my  head? 
Enter,  <  >  mistress,  such  are  the  laws  of  Allatu. 

At  the  second  gate,  he  removes  the  earrings  of  the  goddess; 
at  the  third,  her  necklace  is  taken  away,  and,  similarly,  at  each 
succeeding  gate,  a  portion  of  her  dress,  the  ornaments  on  her 
1 'least,  her  belt  of  precious  stones,  her  bracelets,  until,  when 
the  seventh  gate  is  reached,  the  covering  over  her  loins  is  re- 
moved, and  she  stands  naked  before  Allatu.  At  each  <rate 
Ishtar  asks  the  same  question,  why  the  watchman  strips  her, 
and  the  same  answer  is  given. 

The  removal  of  one  ornament  after  the  other  symbolizes, 
evidently,  the  gradual  decay  of  vegetation,  not,  as  has  been 
supposed,   that  the  dead  enter   Aralu   naked. 

Allatu  calls  upon  her  messenger,  Namtar,  to  strike  the 
goddess  with   disease  in  all  parts  of  her  body.     The  disease 

1  Jensen,  Kosmologie,  pp.  173  sea. 

'■'  Here  used  as  an  epithi  t  oi  the  nethei  world.     See  above,  p.  563. 
Or  'p  i        lower  world,  it  will  be  recalled,  is  pictured  as  a  house  or  a 

country.     Here  the  two  terms  are  combined.     See   Delitzsch,     Issyr.  Worterbuch, 

'   rhe  phrases  used  are  the  ordinary  terms  oi  greeting.      See,  e.g.,  VR.  65,  17b. 


THE   VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH.  571 

expresses  the  same  idea  as  the  removal  of  the  ornaments,  - 
decay  of  strength.     There  follows  a  description  of  the  desola- 
tion on  earth  during  Ishtar's  sojourn  with  Allatu.     Productivity 
comes  to  a  standstill. 

The  ox  does  not  mount  the  cow,  the  ass  does  not  bend  over  the  she-ass. 

Among  mankind,  likewise,  fertility  ceases.  The  gods  lament 
the  absence  of  Ishtar  and  the  fate  that  overtook  her.  The 
astronomical  conception  of  Ishtar  as  the  planet  Venus,  at  this 
point,  is  apparent.     The  gods  complain. 

Ishtar  has  descended  to  the  earth,  and  has  not  come  up. 

As  a  planet,  Ishtar's  seat  is  in  the  heavens.  The  disappearance 
of  the  planet  has  been  combined  with  the  nature-myth  of  the 
decay  of  vegetation.  As  the  evening  star,  Venus  dips  down 
into  the  west,  to  reappear  after  a  long  interval  in  the  east.  The 
astral  character  of  Ishtar  dominates  the  latter  half  of  the  story 
in  its  present  form.  It  is  not  the  goddess  of  love  and  fertility 
nor  the  goddess  of  war  who  is  rescued  from  her  prison  by  Ea, 
but  the  planet  Ishtar.  Shamash  is  informed  of  the  disaster 
by  his  servant,  Pap-sukal.1  The  sun-god  proceeds  for  aid  to 
Sin  and  Ea.  The  latter  furnishes  relief.  The  sun  enters  Ea's 
domain  every  evening,  and,  since  it  is  in  the  west  that  the 
planet  sinks  like  the  sun,  the  association  of  ideas  becomes 
apparent  which  suggests  Ea  as  the  savior  and  the  sun  as  the 
mediator. 

Ea  created  in  his  wisdom  a  male  being. 

He  formed  Uddushu-namir,  a  divine  servant. 

Go,  Uddushu-namir,  to  the  gate  of  the  land  without  return,  turn  thy  face. 

The  seven  gates  of  the  land  without  return  will  be  opened  before  thee. 

Allatu  will  see  thee  and  welcome  thee 

After  her  heart  is  pacified,  her  spirit'2  brightened. 

i  Gibil-Nusku  may  be  meant.     See  the  hymn,  p.  27S.     Pap-sukal  is  a  title  of  Nabu 
(p.  130),  but  also  of  other  gods. 
2  Lit., '  liver.' 


BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Invoice  against  her  the  name  of  the  great  gods. 

Raise  thy  countenance,  to  Sukhal-ziku  direct  thy  attention. 

Come,  mistress,  grant  me  Sukhal-ziku,  that  I  may  drink  •  therefrom. 

1. 1  appears  here  again  in  the  role  of  Creator.2  The  name  of 
the  mysterious  being  created  by  Ea  signifies  'renewal  of  light.' 
The  incident,  it  will  be  seen,  is  wholly  symbolical.  A  touch  of 
mysticism  has  also  been  introduced.  Sukhal-ziku  is  a  com- 
pound of  a  word  meaning  'to  sprinkle  '  and  another  which  may 
mean  'grotto.' 3  Sukhal-ziku  appears,  therefore,  to  be  the  name 
for  a  mysterious  fountain,  the  waters  of  which  restore  the  dead 
to  life. 

Uddushu-namir  having  pronounced  the  name  of  the  gods 
before  Allatu,  and  having  thus  secured  their  aid,  his  request  is 
in  the  nature  of  an  order.  But  the  request  must  not  be  inter- 
preted literally,  as  though  the  waters  were  intended  for  him. 
It  is  for  the  sake  of  Ishtar  that  he  desires  to  have  the  use  of 
Sukhal-ziku.  Allatu  understands  Uddushu-namir's  speech  in 
this  sense,  and  is  enraged  at  the  order  to  yield  up  Ishtar. 

Allatu,  upon  hearing  this, 

Smote  her  sides  and  bit  her  finger.4 

Thou  hast  demanded  of  me  a  request  that  should  not  be  requested. 

I  oine,  Uddushu-namir,  I  will  curse  thee  with  a  terrible  curse. 

Food  from  the  gutters  of  the  city  be  thy  nourishment. 

The  sewers  (?)  of  the  city  be  thy  drink. 

The  shadow  of  the  wall  be  thy  seat. 

The  threshold  be  thy  dwelling. 

Exile  ami  banishment  break  thy  strength. 

'Hie  force  of  the  curse  lies  in  the  closing  words.  Uddushu- 
namir  is  to  be  an  outcast.     He  will  not  be  permitted  to  enter 

1  For  the  translation  of  these  lines  see  Jensen,  Kosmologie,  p.  233. 

-  See  allow,  p.   (  (i. 

So  feremias'  Vorstelhingen,  etc.;  see  p.  ;,<).     Zikutu  from  the  same  stem  means 
a  'drinking  bowl.' 

1  A  biting  of  the  lips  is  elsewhere  introduced  as  a  figure.  See  the  author's  mono- 
graph. "  A  Fragment  ol  the  Babylonian  Dibbarra  Epic,"  p.  14. 


THE   VIEWS   OE  LIFE   AFTER  DEATH.  573 

either  city  or  house,  but  must  remain  at  the  wall  or  stop  at 
the  threshold.  Properly  prepared  food  and  drink  are  to  be 
denied  him.      He  shall  starve  or  perish  miserably. 

But  the  mission  of  Uddushu-namir  has  been  accomplished. 
Allatu  may  curse  as  she  pleases ;  the  order  of  Ea  must  be 
obeyed. 

The  goddess  Allatu  opened  her  mouth  and  spoke. 

To  Namtar,  her  messenger,  she  addressed  an  order : 

Go,  Namtar,  smash  the  true  palace.1 

Break  down  the  threshold,  destroy  the  door-posts  (?)  . 

Bring  out  the  Anunnaki  and  place  them  on  golden  thrones. 

Besprinkle  Ishtar  with  the  waters  of  life  and  take  her  from  me. 

Namtar  obeys  the  order.  Ishtar  is  led  through  the  seven 
gates.  At  each  one,  the  articles  taken  from  her  on  her  en- 
trance are  returned:  at  the  first,  the  loin  cloth;  at  the  second, 
the  bracelets  and  ankle  rings,  and  so  on,  until  she  emerges  in 
her  full  beauty. 

The  close  of  the  story  thus  brings  to  our  gaze  once  more 
Ishtar  as  goddess  of  fertility,  who  gradually  brings  vegetation, 
strength,  and  productivity  back  again.  This  curious  mixture  in 
the  story  of  the  astral  Ishtar,  —  the  creation  of  the  astronomers, 
—  and  the  popular  Ishtar,  is  a  trait  which  shows  how  the  old 
nature-myth  has  been  elaborated  in  passing  through  the  hands 
of  the  literati.  The  various  steps  in  the  process  can  still  be 
seen.  In  the  original  form,  the  goddess  must  have  been  forced 
into  an  exile  to  the  nether  world,  the  exile  symbolizing  the 
wintry  season  when  fertility  and  productivity 2  come  to  an  end. 
Ishtar  is  stripped  of  her  glory.  She  comes  to  Allatu,  who 
grieves  at  her  approach,  but  imprisons  her  in  the  '  great  house,' 

1  See  Delitzsch,  Assyr.  Worterbuch,  p.  341. 

2  So  far  as  the  domestic  animals  are  concerned,  it  is  true  that  they  throw  off  their 
young  in  the  spring.  The  reference  to  a  similar  interruption  in  the  case  of  mankind 
(see  above,  p.  571)  may  embody  the  recollection  of  a  period  when  a  regular  pairing 
season  and' breeding  time  existed  among  mankind.  See  Westermarck,  The  History 
of  Human  Marriage,  pp.  27  scq. 


574  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

and  refuses  to  yield  her  up,  until  forced  to  do  so  by  order  of  the 
gods.  A  similar  story  must  have  been  told  of  Tammuz,  the 
sun  god,  who  is  also  the  god  of  vegetation.  The  two  stories 
were  combined.  Ishtar  marries  Tammuz,  and  then  destroys 
him.  The  goddess  produces  fertility,  but  cannot  maintain  it. 
Tammuz  goes  to  the  nether  world.  Ishtar  repents,  bewails  her 
loss,  and  goes  to  seek  for  her  consort  and  to  rescue  him.  In 
rage  she  advances  to  Allatu,  threatens  to  smash  the  door  and 
break  the  lock  unless  admitted.  The  story  in  this  form  must 
have  ended  in  the  restoration  of  Tammuz.  The  identification 
of  Ishtar  with  the  planet  Venus  introduced  a  new  factor.  The 
disappearance  of  the  planet  fitted  in  well  with  the  original 
nature-myth.  The  combination  of  the  Ishtar-Tammuz  story 
with  this  factor  resulted  in  the  tale  as  we  have  it  now.  The 
enraged  Ishtar  is  the  one  who  seeks  for  her  consort.  The  Ish- 
tar who  is  forced  to  give  up  her  ornaments  is  the  old  goddess 
who  falls  into  the  hands  of  Allatu.  During  her  absence,  pro- 
duction comes  to  a  standstill;  decay  sets  in.  The  Ishtar  who 
is  rescued  by  Ea  through  the  mediation  of  the  '  Renewal  of 
Light'  is  the  astral  Ishtar,  as  developed  by  the  astronomers, 
and,  finally,  the  Ishtar  who  receives  her  ornaments  back  again 
and  comes  to  the  upper  world,  is  once  more  the  goddess  of 
vegetation,  rescued  from  her  exile  to  new  glory.  Up  to  this 
point,  Tammuz  has  not  been  mentioned  in  the  story.  In  the 
advice,  however,  that  is  given  at  the  conclusion  of  the  tale  to 
mourners,  the  consort  of  Ishtar  is  introduced. 

If  she  '  will  not  grant  her  redemption,-  turn  to  her3  [thy  countenance  ?  ] 

To  Tammuz,  her  youthful  consort, 

Tour  out  pure  waters,  costly  oil  [offer  him?]. 

Phe  mourners  are   furthermore  instructed  to  institute  a  formal 
lamentation.     The    Ukhati.4  the   priestesses   of   Ishtar,  are   to 

1  Allatu.  S  Ishtar. 

-  I.e.,  oi  the  dead  person.  4  See  p.  475. 


THE   VIEWS   OE  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH.  575 

sing  dirges;  flutes  are  to  accompany  the  song.  The  thought 
intended,  apparently,  to  be  conveyed  is  that  if  Allatu  will  not 
give  up  the  dead,  the  surviving  relatives  should  endeavor  to 
secure  the  good  grace  of  Ishtar  and  Tammuz,  who  succeeded 
in  subduing  Allatu. 

The  closing  lines  are  rendered  obscure  by  a  reference  to  the 
goddess  Belili,  who  appears  to  be  the  sister  of  Tammuz.  The 
reference  assumes  the  knowledge  of  a  tale  in  which  the  god- 
dess was  represented  as  breaking  a  costly  vessel  adorned  with 
precious  stones,  in  sign  of  her  grief  for  the  lost  Tammuz. 
Suitable  mourning  for  Tammuz,  therefore,  will  secure  the  sym- 
pathy of  Belili  also.  The  story  thus  ends  with  a  warning  to 
all  who  mourn  for  their  dead  to  remember  Tammuz,  to  observe 
the  rites  set  aside  for  the  festival  celebrated  in  his  honor. 

Bearing  in  mind  the  tentative  character  of  any  interpretation 
for  the  closing  lines,  we  may  mention  Jeremias'  '  supposition 
that  it  is  a  deceased  sister  who  addresses  her  sorrowing  brother 
at  the  end  of  the  story. 

My  only  brother,  let  me  not  perish. 

On  the  day  of  Tammuz,  play  for  me  on  the  flute  of  lapis  lazuli,  together 

with  the  lyre  -  of  pearl  play  for  me. 
Together  let  the  professional  dirge  singers,  male  and  female,  play  for  me, 
That  the  dead  may  arise  and  inhale  the  incense  of  offerings. 

The  lines  impress  one  as  snatches  from  a  dirge,  sung  or 
recited  in  memory  of  the  dead,  and  introduced  here  as  an 
appropriate  illustration  of  the  conclusion  to  be  drawn  from  the 
tale.  At  all  events,  the  consolation  that  the  mourner  receives 
lies  in  this  thought, — the  dead  can  hear  the  lamentation. 
The  survivors  are  called  upon  not  to  forget  the  dead.  When 
the  festival  of  Tammuz  comes,  let  them  combine  with  the 
weeping  for  the  god,  a  dirge  in  memory  of  the  dead.  Let 
them  pray  to  Ishtar   and   Tammuz.      If   remembered  by  the 

1  Vorstellungen,  pp.  6-8.  2  Some  instrument  is  mentioned. 


576  HAHYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

living,  the  dead  will  at  least  enjoy  the  offerings  made  to  them, 
regain,  as  it  were,  a  temporary  sense  of  life  ;  but  more  cannot 
with  certainty  be  hoped  for. 

The  outlook  for  the  dead,  it  will  be  seen,  is  not  hopeful. 
Their  condition  is  at  best  a  tolerable  one.  What  we  may  glean 
from  other  sources  but  confirms  the  general  impression,  con- 
veyed by  the  opening  and  closing  lines  of  the  Ishtar  story,  or 
makes  the  picture  a  still  gloomier  one.  The  day  of  death  is  a 
day  of  sorrow,  '  the  day  without  mercy.'  The  word  for  corpse 
conveys  the  idea  that  things  have  'come  to  an  end.'  When- 
ever  death  is  referred  to  in  the  literature,  it  is  described  as  an 
unmitigated  evil.  A  dirge  introduced  into  an  impressive  hymn 
to  Nergal  '  laments  the  fate  of  him  who 

.  .  .  has  descended  to  the  breast  of  the  earth, 
Satiated,2  [he  has  gone]  to  the  land  of  the  dead. 
Full  of  lament  on  the  day  that  he  encountered  sorrow, 
In  the  month  which  does  not  bring  to  completion  the  year,3 
( >n  the  road  of  destruction  for  mankind, 
To  the  wailing-place  (?), 
The  hero  [has  gone],  to  the  distant  invisible  land. 

We  must  not  be  misled  by  an  epithet  bestowed  upon  several 
gods,  .Marduk,  Ninib,  and  Gula,  of  'the  restorer  of  the  dead 
to  life,'  into  the  belief  that  the  dead  could  be  brought  back 
from  Aralti.  These  epithets  appear  chiefly  in  incantations  and 
hymns  addressed  to  the  gods  for  some  specific  purpose,  such 
as  deliverance  of  a  sufferer  from  disease.  The  gods  are 
appealed  to  against  the  demons,  whose  grasp  means  death. 
Ninib  and  Gula  are  viewed  as  gods  of  healing.4  To  be  cured 
ili lough  their  aid  was  to  be  snatched  from  the  jaws  of  death. 
Moreover,  Ninib  and  Marduk,  as  solar  deities,  symbolize  the 
sun  of  spring,  which  brings  about  the  revivification  of  nature. 

1  IVR.  30,  no.  2.  obverse  23-35. 

is  explained  by  a  gloss,  'Shamash  has  made  him  great.' 
the  month  in  which  one  dies.  *  See  p.  175. 


THE   VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH.  577 

The  return  of  vegetation  suggests  the  thought  that  Ninib  and 
Marduk  have  filled  with  new  life  what  appeared  to  be  dead. 
The  trees  that  seemed  entirely  dead  blossom  forth ;  the  bare 
earth  is  covered  with  verdure.  Similarly,  the  suffering  individual 
stricken  with  disease  could  be  awakened  to  new  life.  It  is  this 
'  restoration '  which  lies  in  the  power  of  the  gods,  but  once  a 
man  has  been  carried  off  to  Aralii,  no  god  can  bring  him  back 
to  this  earth. 

An  apparent  exception  to  the  rule,  according  to  which  all 
mankind  eventually  comes  to  Aralii,  is  formed  by  Parnapishtim 
and  his  wife,  who  dwell  in  a  place  vaguely  described  as 
'distant,'  situated  at  the  'confluence  of  the  streams.'  The 
place,  as  was  pointed  out  in  a  previous  chapter,1  lies  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  Persian  Gulf,  and,  since  it  can  only  be  reached 
by  water,  the  natural  conclusion  is  that  it  is  an  island.  The 
temptation  is  strong  to  compare  the  dwelling  of  Parnapishtim 
with  the  belief  found  among  the  Greeks  and  other  nations,  of 
'an  island  of  the  blessed.'  This  has  been  done  by  Jeremias2 
and  others.  However,  we  must  bear  in  mind  that  the  point 
in  Parnapishtim's  narrative  is  that  he  and  his  wife  do  not  die. 
They  are  removed  to  the  distant  place  by  the  gods  and  con- 
tinue to  live  there.  Again,  we  do  not  learn  of  any  other  per- 
son who  inhabits  this  island.  If  to  these  considerations  we 
add,  that  the  name  Parnapishtim  signifies  '  offspring  of  life,' 
that  his  wife's  name  is  not  mentioned,  that  we  are  not  told 
what  becomes  of  his  family  and  servants,  who  are  also  saved 
from  the  deluge,  it  is  evident  that  the  incident  of  Parnapishtim's 
escape  is  an  allegory,  introduced  into  the  story  as  a  dramatic 
means  of  teaching  the  doctrine  which  we  have  seen  dominates 
the  tale, —  that  man,  ordinarily,  cannot  secure  immortal  life. 

If  there  is  any  connection  between  the  island  where  Parna- 
pishtim dwells  and  the  Greek  conception  of  '  an  island  of  the 
blessed,'  it  is  a  trace  of  foreign  influence  in  Babylonian  mythol- 
i  See  pp.  505,  506.  2  Vorstellungen,  p.  Si. 


578  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

ogy.  There  is  nothing  to  show  that  among  the  Babylonians, 
either  among  the  populace  or  in  the  schools,  a  belief  arose  in 
a  '  paradise  '  whither  privileged  persons  were  transported  after 
death,  nor  is  any  distinction  made  by  them  between  the  good 
and  the  bad,  so  far  as  the  future  habitation  is  concerned.  All 
mankind,  kings  and  subjects,  virtuous  and  wicked,  goto  Aralu. 
Those  who  have  obtained  the  good  will  of  the  gods  receive 
their  reward  in  this  world,  by  a  life  of  happiness  and  of  good 
health.  The  gods  can  ward  off  disease,  or,  rather,  since  disease 
(as  all  ills  and  misfortunes)  is  a  punishment  sent  by  some  god 
or  demon,  forgiveness  can  be  secured,  the  proof  of  which  will 
consist  in  the  restoration  of  the  sick  to  health,  but  the  moment 
that  death  ensues  the  control  of  the  gods  ends.  To  the  Baby- 
lonians, the  words  of  the  Psalmist,1  "  who  praises  thee,  O  God, 
in  Sheol  ?  "  came  home  with  terrible  force.  They  expressed, 
admirably,  the  Babylonian  view  of  the  limitations  of  divine 
power.  The  dead  do  not  praise  the  gods,  simply  because  it 
would  be  useless.  The  concern  of  the  gods  is  with  the  living. 
We  are  fortunate  in  possessing  a  pictorial  representation  of 
the  nether  world  that  confirms  the  view  to  be  derived  from  a 
study  of  the  religious  literature.  A  number  of  years  ago,  Cler- 
mont-Ganneau  directed  attention  to  a  remarkable  bronze  tablet 
which  was  purchased  at  Hamath  in  northern  Syria.2  The  art 
was  clearly  Uabylonian,  and  there  was  no  reason  to  question 
the  genuineness  of  the  production.  Quite  recently  a  duplicate 
has  been  found  at  7Airghul,  in  Babylonia,3  so  that  all  suspicions 
.in  removed.  The  bronze  tablet  contains  on  the  one  side,  the 
figure  of  a  monster  with  a  lion-like  face  and  body,  but  provided 
with  huge  wings.  Standing  erect,  his  head  rises  above  the 
tablet,  his  fore  legs  rest  on  the  edge,  and  the  demon  is  thus 

1  Psalms,  vi.  6. 

-'■  I "/■'::'.  i  Assyrien  {Revue  Archaeologique,  1879,  pp.  337-349).     See  also  Perrot 
and  Chipiez,  History  of  Art  in  Chaldaea  and  Assyria,  i.  349  seq. 

Described  by  Scheil  in  the  Recueil  de  Travaux,  etc.,  xx.  nos.  1  and  2.     Scheil 
irds  the  Zurghul  duplicate  a>  older  than  the  other. 


THE   VIEWS   OE  LIEE   AFTER   DEATH.  579 

represented  in  the  attitude  of  looking  over  to  the  other  side  of 
the  tablet.  At  the  side  of  the  monster,  are  two  heads  of 
hideous  appearance. 

The  illustrations  on  the  reverse  are  devoted  to  a  portrayal 
of  a  funeral  ceremony,  and  of  the  general  aspects  of  the  nether 
world.  There  are  five  distinct  divisions,1  marked  off  from  one 
another  by  four  heavy  lines  drawn  across  the  tablet.  In  the 
first  division  appear  the  symbols  of  the  chief  gods  of  the 
Assyrian  pantheon,  Marduk,  Nabu,  Sin,  Ishtar,  Shamash,  Ram- 
man,  etc."  These  gods,  as  inhabiting  the  heaven,  are  placed 
at  the  head  of  the  tablet.  Next  come  seven  evil  spirits  figured 
as  various  animals,3  who,  as  inferior  to  the  gods,  and  perhaps 
also  as  messengers  of  the  latter,  are  assigned  a  place  midway 
between  heaven  and  earth.  In  the  third  section,  there  is  pic- 
tured the  funeral  ceremony  proper.  A  dead  body  lies  on  a 
couch.  Two  rather  strange  figures,  but  apparently  priests, 
have  taken  up  a  position,  one  at  each  end  of  the  funeral  bier, 
performing  some  rite  of  purification.  One  of  the  priests  has  a 
robe  of  fish  scales  and  is  bearded  ;  the  other  is  smooth-faced 
and  clothed  in  a  long  garment.  Censers  are  placed  near  the 
priests.  The  latter  appear  at  the  same  time  to  be  protecting 
the  body  against  two  demons  whose  threatening  gestures  sug- 
gest that  they  are  endeavoring  to  secure  possession  of  the  dead.4 
These  demons  may  be  the  special  messengers  of  the  gods  of 
the  nether  world,  who  have  brought  about  the  death  of  their 
victim.  Below  this  scene,  we  come  to  a  view  of  the  nether 
world.  The  division  is  much  larger  than  any  of  the  others. 
Two   hideous   figures   dominate    the   scene,   both   of   fantastic 

1  Only  four  on  the  Zurghul  duplicate. 

2  For  the  interpretation  of  these  symbols,  see  Luschan,  Ausgrabungen  in  Send- 
schirli,  pp.  1 7-27,  and  Scheil's  article.  On  the  Zurghul  tablet  there  are  eight  symbols, 
while  the  other  contains  nine. 

3  See  pp.  263,  264.  A  text  IV R.  5,  col.  i.  compares  each  of  the  seven  spirits  to 
some  animal.  On  the  duplicate  six  demons  are  placed  in  the  second  division  and 
the  seventh  in  the  third. 

*  On  the  duplicate  these  two  demons  do  not  occur. 


5S0  BAB  I  I  a  >.\/,l.Y  ASS )  'RIAN  RELIGION. 

shape,  and  evidently  so  portrayed  as  to  suggest  the  horror  of 
the  nether  world.  One  of  these  figures1  stands  erect  in  a 
menacing  attitude;  the  other  is  resting  in  a  kneeling  position 
on  a  horse.-  The  second  figure  is  a  representation  of  the  chief 
sroddess  of  the  nether  world  —  Allatu.  The  demon  at  her  side 
would  then  be  the  special  messenger  of  this  goddess,  Namtar. 
The  goddess  has  her  two  arms  extended,  in  the  act  of  stran- 
gling  a  serpent.  The  act  symbolizes  her  strength.  Her  face  is 
that  of  a  lioness,  and  she  is  suckling  two  young  lions  at  her 
breasts.  If  it  be  recalled  that  Nergal,  the  chief  god  of  the 
lower  world,  is  also  pictured  as  a  lion,a  it  seems  but  natural 
to  conclude  that  the  monster  covering  the  one  side  of  the 
tablet  is  none  other  than  the  consort  of  Allatu,  the  heads  on 
either  side  of  him  representing  his  attendants.  At  the  left  side 
of  Allatu  are  a  series  of  objects,  —  a  jar,  bowl,  an  arrowhead  (?), 
a  trident,  which,  as  being  buried  with  the  dead,  are  symbols  of 
the  grave.  The  goddess  and  the  demon  at  her  side  direct 
their  gaze  towards  these  objects. 

The  nether  world  reaches  down  to  the  Apsu,  —  the  'deep'  that 
flows  underneath  the  earth.  This  is  indicated  in  the  design 
by  placing  the  horse,  on  which  the  goddess  rests,  in  a  bark. 
The  bark,  again,  is  of  fantastic  shape,  the  one  end  terminating 
in  the  head  of  a  serpent,  the  other  in  that  of  some  other  animal, 
• — -perhaps  a  bull.  The  bark  reaches  into  the  fifth  division,4 
which  is  a  picture  of  flowing  water  with  fish  swimming  from  the 
left  to  the  right,  as  an  indication  of  the  direction  in  which  the 
water  Hows.  At  the  verge  of  the  water  stand  two  trees.'  What 
these  trees  symbolize  is  not  known,  and  there  are  other  details 
in  the  third  and  fourth  sections  that  still  escape  us.  For  our 
purposes,  it  is  sufficient  to  note  :  (<?)  that  the  sections  represent 
in  a  general  way  the  divisions  of  the  universe,  the  heavens,  the 

heil  thinks  that  the  face  is  that  of  ;i  dog. 
2  On  the  Zurghul  duplicate  the  horse  is  not  pictured.  '■'■  See  p.  529. 

4  This  division  is  not  marked  in  the  duplicate  from  Zurghul. 
Not  occurring  on  the  duplicate. 


THE    VIEWS    OE  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH.  5S1 

atmosphere,  the  earth,  the  nether  world,  and  the  deep ;  '  (l>) 
that  the  nether  world  is  in  the  interior  of  the  earth,  reaching 
down  to  Apsu ;  and  (c)  that  this  interior  is  pictured  as  a  place 
full  of  horrors,  and  is  presided  over  by  gods  and  demons  of 
great  strength  and  fierceness. 

Such  being  the  view  of  the  nether  world,  it  is  natural  that 
the  living  should  regard  with  dread,  not  only  the  place  but  also 
its  inhabitants.  The  gloom  that  surrounded  the  latter  reacted 
on  their  disposition.  In  general,  the  dead  were  not  favorably 
disposed  towards  the  living,  and  they  were  inclined  to  use  what 
power  they  had  to  work  evil  rather  than  for  good.  In  this 
respect  they  resembled  the  demons,  and  it  is  noticeable  that  an 
important  class  of  demons  was  known  by  the  name  ekimtnu,  which 
is  one  of  the  common  terms  for  the  shades  of  the  dead.  This 
fear  of  the  dead,  which  is  the  natural  corollary  to  the  reverence 
felt  for  them,  enters  as  an  important  factor  in  the  honors  paid 
by  the  living  to  the  memory  of  the  deceased.  To  provide  the 
dead  with  food  and  drink,  to  recall  their  virtues  in  dirges,  to 
bring  sacrifices  in  their  honor,  —  such  rites  were  practised, 
as  much  from  a  desire  to  secure  the  favor  of  the  dead  and  to 
ward  off  their  evil  designs  as  from  motives  of  piety,  which,  of 
course,  were  not  absent.  The  dead  who  was  not  properly 
cared  for  by  his  surviving  relatives  would  take  his  revenge  upon 
the  living  by  plaguing  them  as  only  a  demon  could.  The 
demons  that  infested  graveyards  were  in  some  way  identified 
with  the  '  spirits,'  or  perhaps  messengers,  of  the  dead,  who,  in 
their  anger  towards  the  living,  lay  in  wait  for  an  attack  upon 
those  against  whom  they  had  a  grudge. 

l  Scheil  questions  whether  the  divisions  have  this  purpose.  While  perhaps  not 
much  stress  is  laid  by  the  artist  upon  this  symbolism,  its  existence  can  hardly  be 
questioned.  Note  the  five  .divisions  of  the  universe  in  Smith's  Miscellaneous  Texts, 
p.  16.  The  water  certainly  represents  the  Apsu.  Allatu  rests  upon  the  bark.  We 
do  not  find  among  the  Babylonians  (as  Scheil  supposes)  the  view  that  the  dead  are 
conveyed  across  a  sheet  of  water  to  the  nether  world.  The  dead  are  buried,  and  by 
virtue  of  this  fact  enter  Aralu,  which  is  in  the  earth.  Egyptian  influence  is  possible, 
but  unlikely. 


5S2  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 


The  Pantheon  of  Aralu. 

We  have  seen  how  the  mystery  coupled  with  death  led  to 
the  view  which  brought  the  dead  into  more  direct  relationship 
with  the  gods.  Closely  allied  with  this  view  is  the  power 
ascribed  to  the  dead  to  work  evil  or  good  and,  like  the  gods, 
to  furnish  oracles.  This  power  once  acknowledged,  it  was  but 
a  short  step  to  the  deification  of  the  dead,  or,  rather,  of  such 
personalities  who  in  life  exercised  authority,  by  virtue  of  their 
position  or  innate  qualities.  On  the  other  hand,  the  gloominess 
of  the  nether  world,  the  sad  condition  of  its  inhabitants,  the 
impossibility  of  an  escape  or  a  return  to  this  world,  necessarily 
suggested  to  the  Babylonians  that  the  gods  worshipped  by  the 
living  had  no  control  over  the  fate  of  the  dead.  The  gods,  to 
be  sure,  were  at  times  wrathful,  but,  on  the  whole,  they  were 
well  disposed  towards  mankind.  When  angry,  they  could  be 
pacified,  and  it  was  impossible  to  believe  that  they  should 
deliberately  consign  their  creatures  to  such  a  sad  lot  as 
awaited  those  who  went  down  to  Aralu.  The  gods  who  ruled 
the  dead  must  be  different  from  those  who  directed  the  fate  of 
the  living.  A  special  pantheon  for  the  nether  world  was  thus 
developed.  Such  deities  as  Marduk,  Ea,  Nabu,  Shamash,  or 
Ashur,  who  acted,  each  in  his  way,  as  protectors  of  mankind, 
could  find  no  place  in  this  pantheon  ;  but  a  god  like  Nergal, 
who  symbolized  the  midday  sun,  and  the  sun  of  the  summer 
solstice  that  brought  misery  and  fever  to  the  inhabitants  of  the 
Euphrates  Valley;  Nergal,  who  became  the  god  of  violent 
destruction  in  general,  and,  more  particularly,  the  god  of  war, 
the  god  whose  emblem  was  the  lion,  who  was  cruel  and  of  for- 
bidding aspect,  —  such  a  god  was  admirably  adapted  to  rule 
those  who  could  only  look  forward  to  a  miserable  imprisonment 
in  a  region  fdled  with  horror.  Nergal,  therefore,  became  the 
chief  god  of  the  pantheon  of  the  lower  world. 


THE    VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH.  583 

In  the  religious  texts,  the  cruel  aspects  of  this  god  are  almost 
exclusively  emphasized.  He  is  the  one  god  towards  whom  no 
love  is  felt,  for  he  is  a  god  without  mercy.  The  fierce  aspects 
of  the  solar  Nergal  are  accentuated  in  Nergal,  the  chief  of  the 
pantheon  of  Aralu.  He  becomes  even  more  ferocious  than  he 
already  was,  as  a  god  of  war.  His  battle  is  with  all  mankind. 
He  is  greedy  for  victims  to  be  forever  enclosed  in  his  great 
and  gloomy  domain.  Destruction  is  his  one  and  single  object; 
nothing  can  withstand  his  attack.  Armed  with  a  sword,  his 
favorite  time  for  stalking  about  is  at  night,  when  he  strikes  his 
unerring  blows.  Horrible  demons  of  pestilence  and  of  all 
manner  of  disease  constitute  his  train,  who  are  sent  out  by 
him  on  missions  of  death.  The  favorite  titles  by  which  he  is 
known  appear  in  a  hymn  l  addressed  to  him,  as  god  of  the 
lower  world.     He  is  invoked  as  the 

Warrior,  strong  whirlwind,  sweeping  the  hostile  land,2 
Warrior,  ruler  of  Aralu. 

Another  hymn  3  describes  him  as  a 

Great  warrior  who  is  firm  as  the  earth. 
Superior  as  heaven  and  earth  art  thou, 

What  is  there  in  the  deep  that  thou  dost  not  secure  ? 
What  is  there  in  the  deep  that  thou  dost  not  clutch? 

While  references  to  the  local  character  of  the  god  as  patron 
of  Cuthah  survive,  the  name  Cuthah  itself  becomes  synonymous 
with  the  nether  world.  The  old  solar  deity  is  completely  over- 
shadowed by  the  terrible  ruler  of  the  lower  world.  It  is  due  to 
this  that  the  real  consort  of  the  local  Nergal,  the  goddess  Laz, 
is  not  mentioned  in  the  religious  literature.  The  priests,  when 
they  spoke  of  Nergal,  had  in  mind  always  the  companionship  with 
Allatu.     But  the  association  of  ideas  which  thus  led  to  assign- 

i  IVR.  26,  no.  1.  3  IVR.  30,  no.  1  ;  obverse  5,  14. 

-  I.e.,  the  nether  world. 


/.'./A'  YLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

ing  a  god  who  was  originally  a  solar  deity,  a  place  in  the  lower 
world  bears  the  impress  of  the  schools.  The  popular  develop- 
ment of  Nergal  ceased,  when  he  became  the  local  god  of  Cuthah. 
It  is  only  as  an  outgrowth  of  the  systematized  pantheon  that 
we  can  understand  the  transformation  involved  in  making  of  a 
local  deity,  the  head  of  a  pantheon  that  is  itself  an  outcome  of 
the  later  phases  assumed  by  the  religion. 

The  problem  suggested  by  this  transformation  was  recognized 
by  the  theologians.  A  curious  tale  was  found  among  the  El- 
Amarna  tablets  which  endeavors  to  account  for  Nergal's  pres- 
ence in  the  world  of  the  dead.  Unfortunately,  the  tablet  on 
which  the  story  is  inscribed  is  so  badly  mutilated  that  we  can 
hardly  gather  more  than  the  general  outlines.1  A  conflict  has 
arisen  between  the  gods  on  high  and  a  goddess  who  has  her 
seat  in  the  lower  world.  This  goddess  is  none  other  than 
Allatu.  She  is  described  as  Eresh-Kigal,"  i.e.,  queen  of  Kigal 
or  of  the  nether  world.  The  scene  reminds  us  of  the  contest 
between  the  gods  and  Tiamat,  as  embodied  in  the  creation  epic. 
The  gods  choose  Nergal  as  their  leader.  Assisted  by  fourteen 
companions,  whose  names-  'fever,'  'fiery  heart,'  'lightning 
sender  '  —  remind  us  again  of  the  eleven  monsters  that  constitute 
Tiamat's  assistants,3  Nergal  proceeds  to  the  lower  world,  and 
knocks  at  the  gate  for  admission.  Namtar,  the  plague-demon, 
.11  ts  as  the  messenger.  He  announces  the  arrival  of  Nergal  to 
Allatu.  The  latter  is  obliged  to  admit  Nergal,  just  as  in  the  story 
of  [shtar's  descent,  she  is  forced  to  receive  Ishtar.  Fourteen 
gates  of  the  lower  world  are  mentioned.  At  each  one,  Nergal 
stations  one  of  his  companions  and  passes  on  to  the  house  of 

fensen's  valuable  articles,  "  The  Queen  in  the  Babylonian   Hades  and  her 
nt."  in  the  Sunday  School   Times,   March  13  and  20,  1897.     The  text  is  pub- 
l    Winckler  and   Kb         '       Thontafelftmd  von  El-KAmarna,  iii.  164,  165. 
-  Written  phonetically  c-ri-ish.     The  word  is  entered  as  a  synonym  of  sharratum, 
'queen,'  \'K.  28,  no.  2;  obverse  31      This  phonetic  writing  furnishes  the  reading  for 
in  Nin-Kigal. 
IT    l'v;-  I'". 


THE    VIEWS   OE  LIFE  AFTER  DEATH.  585 

Allatu.  He  seizes  the  goddess,  drags  her  from  her  throne,  and 
is  about  to  kill  her  when  she  appeals  for  mercy.  She  breaks 
out  in  tears,  offers  herself  in  marriage  if  Nergal  will  spare  her. 

You  shall  be  my  husband  and  I  will  be  your  wife. 
The  tablets  of  wisdom  I  will  lay  in  your  hands. 
You  shall  be  master  and  I  mistress. 

Nergal  accepts  the  condition,  kisses  Allatu,  and  wipes  away 
her  tears. 

One  cannot  resist  the  conclusion  that  the  tale  is,  as  already 
suggested,  an  imitation  of  the  Marduk-Tiamat  episode.  Allatu  is 
a  female  like  Tiamat.  Nergal  acts  for  the  gods  just  as  Marduk 
does.  The  attendants  of  Nergal  are  suggested  by  the  monsters 
accompanying  Tiamat ;  the  tables  of  wisdom  which  Nergal  re- 
ceives, correspond  to  the  tablets  of  fate  which  Marduk  snatches 
from  Kingu.1  But  while  the  conflict  between  Marduk  and 
Tiamat  is  an  intelligible  nature-myth,  symbolizing  the  annual 
rainstorms  that  sweep  over  Babylonia,  there  is  no  such  interpre- 
tation possible  in  the  contest  between  Nergal  and  Allatu.  The 
story  is  not  even  a  glorification  of  a  local  deity,  for  Nergal 
appears  solely  in  the  role  of  a  solar  deity.  The  attendants 
given  to  him  —  heat,  lightning,  and  disease  —  are  the  popular 
traits  in  the  story;  but  with  the  chief,  characters  in  the  old 
nature-myth  changed,  —  Marduk  or  the  original  Bel  replaced 
by  Nergal,  and  Tiamat  by  Allatu, —  the  story  loses  its  popular 
aspect,  and  becomes  a  medium  for  illustrating  a  doctrine  of  the 
schools.  If  this  view  of  the  tale  be  correct,  we  would  incident- 
ally have  a  proof  (for  which  there  is  other  evidence)  that  as 
early  as  the  fifteenth  century,  the  Marduk-Tiamat  story  had 
already  received  a  definite  shape.  But  the  most  valuable  con- 
clusion to  be  drawn  from  the  Nergal- Allatu  tale  is  that,  accord- 
ing to  the  popular  conceptions,  the  real  and  older  head  of  the 
pantheon  of  the  lower  world  was  a  goddess,  and  not  a  god. 

1  See  p.  42S. 


586  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Allatu  takes  precedence  of  Nergal.  In  the  story  of  Ishtar's 
descent  to  the  lower  world,  a  trace  of  the  earlier  view  survives. 
Allatu  is  introduced  as  the  ruler  of  the  lower  world.  Nerval 
plays  ii"  part.  Viewed  in  this  light,  the  design  of  the  tale  we 
have  just  discussed  becomes  still  more  evident.  It  was  incon- 
sistent with  the  prominence  assigned  to  male  deities  in  the 
systematized  pantheon,  that  the  chief  deity  of  the  lower  world 
should  be  a  female.  Allatu  could  not  be  set  aside,  for  the 
belief  in  her  power  was  too  strongly  imbedded  in  the  popular 
mind  ;  but  a  male  consort  could  be  given  her  who  might  rule 
with  her.  Another  factor  that  may  have  entered  into  play  in 
the  adaptation  of  the  Marduk-Tiamat  story  to  Nergal  and 
Allatu,  and  that  gave  to  the  adaptation  more  plausibility,  was 
the  disappearance  of  the  summer  sun  after  he  had  done  his 
work.  Nergal  did  not  exert  his  power  during  the  whole  year, 
and  even  as  the  sun  of  midday,  he  was  not  in  control  all  day. 
When  he  disappeared,  there  was  only  one  place  to  which  he 
could  go. 

As  of  Tammuz  and  of  other  solar  deities,1  it  was  probably 
related  of  Nergal,  also,  that  he  was  carried  to  the  lower  world. 
This  popular  basis  for  the  presence  of  Nergal  in  the  lower 
world  may  have  served  as  a  point  of  departure  for  the  scholas- 
tic development  of  Nergal.  However,  the  tale  of  Nergal  and 
Allatu  goes  far  beyond  the  length  of  popular  belief  in  making 
Nergal  conquer  Allatu,  and  force  himself,  in  a  measure,  into 
her  place.  Before  Nergal  appears  on  the  scene,  a  god,  Nin- 
azu,  was  regarded  as  the  consort  of  Allatu.2 

The  conception  which  gives  the  Babylonian  Hades  a  queen 
as  ruler  is  of  popular  origin,  in  contrast  to  the  scholastic  aspect 
of  Nergal  as  die  later  king  of  the  lower  region.  Jensen  is  of 
the  opinion  that  the  feminine  gender  of  the  word  for  earth  in 
Babylonian  superinduced  the  belief  that  the  ruler  of  the  kingdom 

1  See  in-low.  p.  588  seq. 
-  See  below,  p.  590 


THE    VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH.  5S7 

situated  within  the  earth  was  a  woman.     Allatu  would,  accord- 
ing to  this  view,  be  a  personification  of  the  '  earth.'     But  a  factor 
that  also  enters  into  play  is  the  notion  of  productivity  and  fer- 
tility which  gave  rise  to  the  conception  of  the  great  mother- 
goddess,   Ishtar.1      Allatu  is  correlated  to  Ishtar.     From  the 
earth  comes  vegetation.     The  origin  of  mankind,  too,  is  traced 
to    the    earth,   and  to  the   earth  mankind  ultimately   returns.2 
Hence,  the  receiver  of  life  is  a  goddess  equally  with  the  giver  of 
life,  and  indeed,  Ishtar  and  Allatu  are  but  the  two  aspects  of  one 
and  the  same  phenomenon.3     Allatu  signifies  '  strength.'    The 
name  is  related  to  the  Arabic  Allah  and  the  Hebrew  Eloah  and 
Elohim.    The  same  meaning  —  strength,  power,  rule  —  attaches 
to  many  of  the  names  of  the  gods  of  the  Semites :  Adon,  Etana, 
Baal,  El,  and  the  like.4      It  is  interesting  to  note  that  the  chief 
goddess  of  Arabia  is  Allatf—z  name  identical  with  our  Allatu. 
The  bronze  relief  above  described  furnished  us  with  a  pic- 
ture of  this  queen  of  the  lower  world.     The  gloom  enveloping 
the  region  controls  this  picture.     Allatu  is  of  as  forbidding  an 
aspect  as  Tiamat.     She  is  warlike  and  ferocious.     When  en- 
rased,  her  anger  knows  no  bounds.     Her  chief  attendants  are 
the  terrible  Namtar  and  a  scribe  —  also  a  female— known  as 
Belit-seri.     Of  these  two  personages,  Namtar,  the  personifica- 
tion of  disease,  is  a  popular  conception,  whereas  the  addition 
of  a  scribe  points  again  to  the  influence  of  the  schools.     Mar- 
duk,  the  chief  god  of  the  living,  has  a  scribe  who  writes  down, 
at  the  god's  dictation,  the  fate  decreed  for  individuals.     Corre- 
sponding  to  this,  the  ruler  of  the  lower  world  has  a  scribe  who 
writes  down  on  the  tablets  of  wisdom  the  decrees  of  the  god- 

i  See  above,  p.  79. 

2  See  pp.  448,  511. 

3  See  Farnell,  The  Cults  of  the  Greek  States,  ii.  627. 

4  See  the  reference  in  note  3  to  p.  519. 

s  Wellhausen,  Reste  Arabischen  Heidenthums,  pp.  28,  29.  That  the  Syro-Ara- 
bian  Allat  resembles  Ishtar  rather  than  Allatu,  points  again  to  the  original  identity 
of  the  two  goddesses. 


588  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

dess,  and,  at  a  later  stage,  the  decrees  of  Nergal  as  well.  Belit- 
seri,  whose  name  signifies  'mistress  of  the  field,'  was  originally 
a  goddess  of  vegetation,  some  local  deity  who  has  been  reduced 
to  the  rank  of  an  attendant  upon  a  greater  one;  and  it  is  sig- 
nificant that  almost  all  the  members  of  the  nether-world  pan- 
theon are  in  some  way  connected  with  vegetation. 

Tammuz,  of  whose  position  in  this  pantheon  we  have 
already  had  occasion  to  speak,  is  the  god  of  spring  vegetation. 
Another  solar  deity,  Nin-gishzida,1  who  is  associated  in  the 
Adapa  legend  with  Tammuz,  is  the  deity  who  presides  over 
the  growth  of  trees.  En-meshara,  who  also  belongs  to  the 
court  of  Nergal  and  Allatu,  appears  to  represent  vegetation 
in  general.  To  these  may  be  added  Girra  (or  Gira),  who  orig- 
inally, as  it  would  appear,  a  god  of  vegetation,  is  eventually 
identified  with  Dibbarra,2  Gil,  whom  Jensen"  regards  as  'the  god 
of  foliage,'  and  Belili,  the  sister  of  Tammuz.4  Of  this  group  of 
deities,  Tammuz  and  Nin-gishzida  are  the  most  important.  In 
the  Adapa  legend,  it  will  be  recalled,  they  are  stationed  as 
guardians  in  heaven.  As  solar  deities,  they  properly  belong 
there.  Like  Nergal,  they  have  been  transferred  to  the  nether 
world  ;  and  in  the  case  of  all  three,  the  process  that  led  to  the 
change  appears  to  have  been  the  same.  The  trees  blossom, 
hear  fruit,  and  then  decay  ;  the  fields  are  clothed  in  glory,  and 
then  shorn  of  their  strength.  The  decay  of  vegetation  was 
popularly  figured  as  due  to  the  weakness5  of  the  god  who 
produced  the  fertility.  Tammuz  has  been  deceived  by  Ishtar; 
\in  gishzida  has  been  carried  off  to  the  lower  world.  In  the 
month  of  Tebet,  •  -the  tenth  month,-  there  was  celebrated  a 
festival  of  mourning  for  the  lost  En-meshara.  It  is  the  time  of 
the  winter  solstice.      A  similar  fate  must   have  overtaken  lielit- 


1  See  p  5 1'.  teq.  i  See  p.  574. 

1        p     94,  note  1.  and  Jensen's  fCosmologie,  pp.  1  (.5,  j8o,  1.83,  j  S7. 
:!  Sunday  School  Times,  1897,  p.  1  59. 

1  1    /it.   The  Golden  Bough,  i.  24a  seq.  and  274,  275. 


THE    VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER  DEATH.  589 

seri,  Girra,  and  Gil.  For  a  time,  at  least,  they  are  hidden  in  the 
realm  of  Allatu.  Of  all  these  deities,  stories  were  no  doubt 
current  that  formed  so  many  variations  of  one  and  the  same 
theme,  symbolizing  their  disappearance  and  the  hoped-for  return, 
the  same  story  that  we  encounter  in  the  myth  of  Venus  and 
Adonis,  in  the  myth  of  Osiris,  and,  in  some  guise  or  other,  among 
many  other  nations  of  the  ancient  world.  Of  Girra,  it  may  be 
well  to  remember  that  he  is  viewed  merely  as  a  form  of  Nergal 
in  the  later  texts.  Eelili,  it  will  be  recalled,  is  associated  with 
Tammuz  in  the  story  of  Ishtar's  journey.1  She  is  not,  how- 
ever, the  consort  of  the  god,  but  his  sister.  The  antiquity  of 
her  cult  follows  from  the  occurrence  of  her  name  in  the  list  of 
gods  antecedent  to  Anu,2  and  where  Alala  is  entered  as  her 
consort.  Whatever  else  the  relationship  of  '  sister  '  to  Tam- 
muz means,  it  certainly  indicates  that  Belili  belongs  to  the 
deities  of  vegetation,  and  it  may  be  that  she  will  turn  out  to  be 
identical  with  Belit-seri,  which  is  merely  the  designation  of 
some  goddess,  and  not  a  real  name.3  One  is  inclined  also  to 
suspect  some,  albeit  remote,  connection  between  Alala,  the 
consort  of  Belili,  and  the  Alallu  bird  who  is  spoken  of  in  the 
Gilgamesh  epic  as  having  been  deprived  of  her  pinions  by  Ish- 
tar.4  In  the  tale,  Tammuz,  the  Alallu  bird,  a  lion,  and  a  horse 
are  successively  introduced  as  those  once  loved  and  then  de- 
ceived by  Ishtar.  The  lion  is,  as  has  been  several  times  indi- 
cated, the  symbol  of  Nergal ;  the  horse  appears  in  the  Hades 
relief  above  described  as  the  animal  upon  which  Allatu  is  seated, 
and  it  seems  legitimate,  therefore,  to  seek  for  Alallu  also  in  the 

i  See  p.  574.  2  See  p.  417. 

3  Cheyne  {Expository  Times,  1S97,  pp.  423,  424)  ingeniously  regards  Belili  as  the 
source  of  the  Hebrew  word  Bcliyaal  or  Belial,  which,  by  a  species  of  popular  ety- 
mology, is  written  by  the  ancient  Hebrew  scholars  as  though  compounded  of  two 
Hebrew  words  signifying  '  without  return.'  The  popular  etymology  is  valuable  as 
confirming  the  proposition  to  place  Belili  in  the  pantheon  of  the  lower  world.  From 
its  original  meaning,  the  word  became  a  poetical  term  in  Hebrew  for  'worthless,' 
'useless,'  and  the  like,  e.g.,  in  the  well-known  phrase  "  Sons  of  Belial." 

4  See  p.  4S2. 


5<X)  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

nether  world.  While  it  may  be  that  a  long  process  intervened, 
before  such  a  species  of  symbolization  was  brought  about  as 
the  representation  of  an  ancient  deity  in  the  guise  of  a  bird, 
still,  if  it  will  be  recalled  that  Zu  is  a  deity,  pictured  as  a  bird,1 
there  is  every  reason  to  interpret  the  bird  Alallu  merely  as  the 
symbol  of  some  deity,  just  as  the  lion  is  certainly  such  a  symbol. 

Jensen  would  add  Etana  to  the  list  of  gods  of  vegetation 
who  form  part  of  Allatu's  court.  While  the  etymology  he  pro- 
poses for  the  name  is  not  acceptable,  there  is  no  doubt  that  to 
Etana,  like  Gilgamesh,  the  character  of  a  solar  deity  has  been 
imparted.  His  presence  in  the  nether  world  is  due  to  the  story 
of  his  flight  with  the  eagle  and  the  fall.-  If  he  falls  from 
heaven,  he  naturally  enters  the  realm  of  Allatu,  and  it  is  possi- 
ble that  the  story  in  its  original  form  was  suggested  by  a  myth 
illustrating  the  change  of  seasons.  The  question,  however, 
must  for  the  present  remain  an  open  one. 

A  god  associated  with  the  nether  world  who  again  appears 
to  be  a  solar  deity  is  Nin-azu.  His  name  points  to  his  being 
'the  god  of  healing.'  A  text  states'"  that  Allatu  is  his  con- 
sult. Such  a  relationship  to  the  chief  goddess  of  the  nether 
world  maybe  regarded  as  a  survival  of  the  period  when  Nergal 
had  not  yet  been  assigned  to  this  place.  The  introduction  of 
a  distinctly  beneficent  god  into  the  pantheon  of  the  lower  world, 
and  as  second  in  rank,  shows  also  that  the  gloomy  concep- 
tion of  the  lower  world  was  one  that  developed  gradually. 
Tammuz,  Nin-gishzida,  and  the  like  are  held  enthralled  by 
Allatu,  and  remain  in  the  nether  world  against  their  will  ;  but 
if  Allatu  chooses  as  her  consort  a  'god  of  healing,'  she  must 
have  been  viewed  as  a  goddess  who  could  at  times,  at  least,  be 
actuated  by  kindly  motives.  The  phase  of  the  sun  symbolized 
by  Nin-azu  is,  as  in  the  case  of  Tammuz  and  others,  the  sun 
ot    the  springtime  and  of  the  morning.      If  it  be  recalled  that 

1  See  p.  537.  8  1 1 R.  59;  reverse  53-35. 

ove,  p,  523. 


THE    VIEWS   OE  LIEE   AFTER    DEATH.  591 

Gula,  the  great  goddess  of  healing,  is  the  consort  of  Ninib,1  it 
will  be  clear  that  Nin-azu  must  be  closely  related  to  Ninib  — 
and  is,  indeed,  identified  with  the  latter.2  With  Nergal  in  con- 
trol, Nin-azu  had  to  yield  his  privilege  to  be  the  husband  of 
Allatu.  The  substitute  of  the  fierce. sun  of  the  summer  sol- 
stice for  the  sun  of  spring  is  a  most  interesting  symptom  of  the 
direction  taken  by  the  Babylonian  beliefs,  regarding  the  fate 
of  the  dead.  It  may  be  that  in  the  earlier  period,  when  more 
optimistic  views  of  Aralu  were  current,  Gula,  who  is  called  the 
one  "who  restores  the  dead  to  life,'  may  have  had  a  place  in 
the  pantheon  of  the  lower  world  ;  not  that  the  Babylonians  at 
any  time  believed  in  the  return  of  the  dead,  but  because  the 
living  could  be  saved  from  the  clutches  of  death.  Ninib  and 
Gula,  as  gods  of  spring,  furnished  the  spectacle  of  such  a 
miracle  in  the  return  of  vegetation.  In  this  sense,  we  have 
seen  that  Marduk,  the  god  of  spring,  was  also  addressed  as 
'  the  restorer  to  life.'  But  while  the  revivification  of  nature  con- 
trols the  conception  of  gods  of  healing,  like  Nin-azu,  Ninib, 
and  Gula,  the  extension  of  the  idea  would  lead,  naturally,  to 
the  association  of  these  gods  with  the  ruler  of  the  nether  world, 
at  a  time  when  it  was  still  believed  that  this  ruler  could  be 
moved  by  appeals  to  loosen  her  hold  upon  those  whom  she  was 
about  to  drag  to  her  kingdom.  But  it  is  important  always  to 
bear  in  mind  that  beyond  this  apparent  restoration  of  the  dead 
to  life,  the  Babylonians  at  no  time  went. 

In  the  Ishtar  story3  a  god  Irkalla  is  introduced.  Jeremias  4 
takes  this  as  one  of  the  names  of  Allatu,  but  this  is  unlikely.5 
From  other  sources6  we  know  that   Irkalla  is  one  of  the  names 

1  See  above,  p.  175. 

2  I1R.  57,  51a,  a  star,  Nin-azu,  is  entered  as  one  of  the  names  of  the  planet  Ninib. 

3  See  above,  p.  565.     The  name  occurs  also  in  Haupt's  Nimrodcpos,  pp.  19,  29. 

4  Vorsiellungen,  p.  6S. 

5  The  name  of  the  goddess  is  written  throughout  the  story  Nin-Kigal;  i.e., 
'queen  of  the  nether  world.'     Nin-Eresh.     See  p.  5S4,  note  2. 

*>  Smith,  Miscellaneous  Texts,  p.  16. 


592  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

of  the  nether  world.  It  is  in  some  way  connected  with  Uiu- 
gal,1  i.e.,  'great  city,'  which  is  also  a  common  designation  for 
the  dwelling-place  of  the  dead.  Hence,  Irkalla  is  an  epithet 
describing  a  deity  as  '  the  god  of  the  great  city.'  The  Baby- 
lonian scholars,  who  were  fond  of  plays  upon  words,  brought 
the  name  Nergal,  as  though  compounded  of  Ne-uru-gal  (i.e., 
'  ruler  of  the  great  city  '),  into  connection  with  Uru-gal,  and 
thus  identified  Irkalla  with  Nergal.  J5ut,  originally,  some  other 
god  must  have  been  meant,  since  Allatu  appears  as  the  sole 
ruler  of  the  lower  world  in  the  Ishtar  story,  unless,  indeed,  we 
are  to  assume  that  the  name  has  been  introduced  at  a  late  period 
as  a  concession  to  Nergal.  It  is  more  plausible  that  a  god  like 
Nin-azu  was  understood  under  'the  god  of  the  great  city.' 
besides  these  gods,  there  is  another  series  of  beings  who  belong 
to  Allatu's  court,  —  the  demons  who  are  directly  responsible  for 
death  in  the  world.  Of  this  series,  Namtar  is  the  chief  and  the 
representative.  As  the  one  who  gathers  in  the  living  to  the  dark 
abode,  it  is  natural  that  he  should  be  pictured  as  guardian  at 
the  gates  of  the  great  palace  of  Allatu.  But  by  the  side  of 
Namtar  stand  a  large  number  of  demons,  whose  task  is  similar 
to  that  of  their  chief.  A  text'2  calls  the  entire  group  of 
demons,  -the  demon  of  wasting  disease,  the  demon  of  fever, 
the  demon  of  erysipelas,8  and  the  like, —  'the  offspring  of 
Aralu,'  'the  sons  and  messengers  of  Namtar,  the  bearers  of 
destruction  for  Allatu.'  These  demons  are  sent  out  from  Aralu 
to  plague  the  living,  but  once  they  have  brought  their  victims 
to  Aralu,  their  task  is  done.  They  do  not  trouble  the  dead. 
I'he  latter  stand,  as  we  have  seen,  under  the  direct  control  of 
the   gods.4 

The  story  of    Ishtars  descent  to  the  lower  world5  shows  us 
that  the  group  of  spirits  known  as  the  Anunnaki,  also,  belong  to 

1  Jensen,  A'  ,  p  note.  4  See  above,  pp.  183,  560. 

-  IV  K.  1.  col.  i.  12  ;  col.  iii.  8-10.  *>  Obverse  11.  3 $,  57. 

See  LVR.  22,  51a, and  Bartels,  Zeilschrift fiir  Assyrielogie,\\a.  179-184. 


THE    VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH.  593 

the  court  of  Nergal  and  Allatu.  Ramman-nirari  I.  already  desig. 
nates  the  Anunnaki  as  belonging  to  the  earth,1  though  it  is  an 
indication  of  the  vagueness  of  the  notions  connected  with  the 
group  that  in  hymns,  both  the  Anunnaki  and  the  Igigi  are  desig- 
nated as  offspring  of  Anu, — the  god  of  heaven."  They  are 
not  exclusively  at  the  service  of  Nergal  and  Allatu.  Bel, 
Ninib,  Marduk,  and  Ishtar  also  send  them  out  on  missions. 
Evidently,  the  fact  that  their  chief  function  was  to  injure  man- 
kind suggested  the  doctrine  which  gave  them  a  place  in  the 
lower  world  with  the  demons.  The  distinction  between  Anun- 
naki and  the  Igigi  is  not  sharply  maintained  in  the  religious 
literature.  Though  Ramman-nirari  places  the  Igigi  in  heaven, 
it  is  not  impossible  that  a  later  view  transferred  them,  like  the 
Anunnaki,  to  the  lower  world.  There  were,  of  course,  some 
misfortunes  that  were  sent  against  mankind  from  on  high- 
Ramman  was  a  god  who  required  such  messengers  as  the 
Igigi,  and  besides  the  Igigi,  there  were  other  spirits  sent  out  from 
above.  But,  as  in  the  course  of  time  the  general  doctrine  was 
developed  which  made  the  gods,  on  the  whole,  favorably  in- 
clined towards  man,  while  the  evil  was  ascribed  to  the  demons3 
— as  occupying  the  lower  rank  of  divine  beings  —  we  note  the 
tendency  also  to  ascribe  the  ills  that  humanity  is  heir  to,  to  the 
forces  that  dwell  under  the  earth,  --to  Nergal  and  Allatu  and 
to  those  who  did  their  bidding.  Probably,  Lakhmu  and  Lak- 
hamu  were  also  regarded,  at  least  by  the  theologians,  as  part  of 
Allatu's  court,  just  as  Alala  and  Belili 4  were  so  regarded. 

The  confusion  resulting  from  the  double  position  of  Nergal 
in  the  religious  literature,  as  the  deity  of  the  summer  sol- 
stice and  as  the  chief  of  the  nether-world  pantheon,  raises  a 
doubt  whether  some  gods  who  are  closely  associated  with 
Nergal  are  to  be  placed  on  high  with  the  gods  or  have  their 
seats  below  with  Nergal.  Among  these,  three  require  mention 
here  :    Dibbarra,   Gibil,    and    Ishum.     Of   these,    the    first  two 

1  See  above,  p.  1S5.         2  See  p.  186.        3  See  p.  1S3.         4  See  pp.  417,  598. 


S'M  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

are  directly  identified  with  Nergal  in  the  systematized  pan- 
theon,1 while  Ishum  is  closely  associated  with  Nergal,  or 
appears  as  the  attendant  of  Dibbarra.2  These  gods,  symbolizing 
violent  destruction  through  war  and  fire,  are  evidently  related 
to  the  Nergal  of  the  upper  world,  —  to  Nergal,  the  solar  deity  ; 
but  in  the  later  stages  of  the  religion,  the  Nergal  of  the  lower 
world  almost  completely  sets  aside  the  earlier  conception.  It 
is,  therefore,  likely  that  deities  who  stand  so  close  to  the  terrible 
god  as  those  under  consideration,  were  also  regarded  as  having 
a  position  near  his  throne  in  the  lower  world. 

The  pantheon  of  Aralu  thus  assumes  considerable  dimen- 
sions. At  the  same  time,  we  observe  the  same  tendency 
towards  concentration  of  power  in  this  pantheon  as  we  have 
seen  was  the  case  in  the  pantheon  of  the  upper  world. ;J  As  in 
Babylonia  there  are  practically  only  a  few  gods,  —  Marduk, 
Nabu,  [shtar,  Shamash,  and  Sin,  —  who  exercised  considerable 
control ;  and,  as  in  Assyria  we  find  this  tendency  still  more 
accentuated  in  the  supreme  rank  accorded  to  Ashur,  so  in  the 
lower  world  Nergal  and  Allatu  are  the  real  rulers.  The  other 
gods,  and,  naturally,  also  the  demons,  occupy  inferior  posi- 
tions. As  messengers,  guardians,  spies,  or  attendants,  they 
group  themselves  around  the  throne  of  the  two  rulers.  A 
noticeable  feature,  however,  in  the  pantheon  of  the  lower 
world  consists  in  the  high  position  held  by  the  consort  of  the 
head  of  the  pantheon.  Allatu  does  not  sink  to  the  insignificant 
rank  of  being  merely  a  pale  reflection  of  Nergal,  as  do  the 
consorts  of  Marduk,  Shamash,  Ashur,  and  the  like.1  As  a 
trace  of  the  earlier  supreme  control  exercised  by  her,  she  con- 

1  Jensen's  Kosm  '  ..v.  pp.  |N;.  484.    In  the  new  fragment  of  the  Deluge  story  dis- 

Scheil  (referred  to  above,  p.  s°7,  and  now  published  in  the  Recueil  de 

Travauxy  xix.  no.  i)  the  word  di-ib-ba-ra  occurs,  and  the  context  shows  that  it  means 

in  tion."     In  view  of  this,  the  question  is  again  opened  as  to  the  reading  of  the 

name  oJ  the  god  of  war  and  pestilence.     The  identification  of  this  god  with  Girra 

(pp.  528,  588)  may  belong  to  a  late  period.  '■  See  pp.  1  1  1.  171,  190. 

2  See  p.  529.  4  See  chapter  v. 


THE    VIEWS   OE  LIEE   AFTER   DEATH.  595 

tinues  to  reign  with  her  husband.  In  the  popular  mind,  indeed, 
despite  the  influence  of  theological  doctrines,  Allatu  continues 
to  be  more  prominent  than  Nergal.  Nergal  is  obliged  to  abide 
by  the  compact  he  made  with  Allatu.  He  rules  with  her,  but 
not  over  her.  The  theology  of  the  schools  did  not  venture  to 
set  Allatu  aside  altogether ;  and  this  limitation  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  doctrine  that  elsewhere  gave  the  male  principle 
the  supremacy  over  the  female,  may  be  taken  as  a  valuable 
indication  of  the  counter-influence,  exercised  by  deeply  rooted 
popular  beliefs,  over  the  theoretical  elaboration  of  the  religion 
at  the  hands  of  the  religious  guides. 

The  Tombs  and  the  Burial  Customs. 

Our  knowledge  of  the  customs  observed  by  the  Babylo- 
nians and  Assyrians  in  disposing  of  their  dead  leaves  much 
to  be  desired.  Most  of  the  graves  discovered  in  the  ruins  of 
Babylonian  cities  belong  to  the  Persian  or  to  the  Greek 
period.  In  some  cases,1  where  we  have  reason  to  believe  that 
older  graves  have  been  found,  it  is  almost  impossible  to  esti- 
mate their  age.  Recently,  the  expedition  of  the  University  of 
Pennsylvania  to  Nippur  has  unearthed  remains  that  appear  to 
belong  to  an  older  period,  though  nothing  can  be  dated  with 
any  degree  of  certainty  earlier  than  2500  B.C.2  Still,  with 
proper  caution,  even  the  material  belonging  to  a  later  period  may 
be  used  for  the  older  periods.  Burial  customs,  as  has  already 
been  emphasized,  constitute  the  most  conservative  elements  in 
a  religion.  Such  rites  are  much  less  liable  to  change  than  the 
cult  of  the  gods.  Foreign  invasion  would  not  affect  the  funeral 
rites,  even  where  other  religious  customs  are  altered.  Even  so 
violent  a  change  as  that  produced  by  the  introduction  of  Mo- 
hammedanism into  Mesopotamia  has  not  removed  traces  of  the 

1  So  at   Zurghul  (or  Zerghul)  and  el-Hibba.     See  Koldewey  in  Zeitsckrifi  fur 

Assyriologic,  ii.  403-430. 

2  See  the  valuable  chapter  in  Peters'  work  on  Nippur,  ii.  214-234. 


596  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIA.X    RELIGION. 

old  Babylonian  religion.  Dr.  I'eters  has  shown  that  the  district 
in  the  Euphrates  Valley  selected  by  the  modern  Arabs  and  Per- 
sians for  the  interment  of  their  dead  '  derives  its  sanctity  from 
the  days  of  the  old  Babylonian  kingdom,  and  many  of  the  customs 
observed  by  the  modern  Moslems  tally  with  the  funeral  rites 
of  ancient  Babylonia.2  That  the  dead  were  always  buried,  and 
that  cremation  was  practically  unknown,  may  now  be  regarded 
as  certain.  The  conception  of  Aralii,  which,  we  have  seen, 
belongs  to  the  most  ancient  period  of  religion,  is  only  intelli- 
gible upon  the  assumption  that  burial  was  the  prevailing 
custom.  On  one  of  the  oldest  monuments  of  Babylonian 
art,  -  the  stele  of  vultures,  —  earth-burial  is  represented."  A 
few  years  ago,  some  German  scholars 4  claimed  to  have 
furnished  the  proof  that  the  Babylonians  cremated  their 
dead.  But,  in  the  first  place,  the  age  of  the  tombs  found  by 
them  was  not  clearly  established  ;  and,  secondly,  it  was  not 
certain  whether  the  charred  remains  of  human  bodies  were 
due  to  intentional  burning  or  accidental  destruction  by  fire,  at 
the  time  that  the  city  explored  by  the  German  scholars 
was  destroyed.  The  fact  that,  as  the  explorers  themselves 
observed,  the  bodies  were  not  completely  burned  argues  in 
favor  of  the  latter  supposition.  The  explanation  offered  by 
Koldewey  5  for  this  peculiar  condition  of  the  remains  —  that 
the  burning  was  symbolical,  and,  therefore,  not  complete --is 
unsatisfactory  in  every  particular.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that 
some,  at  least,  of  the  tombs  discovered  at  Warka  by  Loftus0 
belong  to  the  period  before  the  conquest  of  the  country  by 
( 'yrus,  and  this  is  certainly  the  case  with  many  of  the  tombs 
discovered  at  Nippur.     Nowhere  do  we  find  traces  of  burning 

edings  of  the   American  Oriental  Society,  1896,  p.  [66.     The  dead  are 
i  hundreds  of  miles  to  he  interred  in  Nejef  and  Kerhela. 
-  Peters'  Nippur,  ii.  525.  326. 

::  See  below,  j>.  597.  .r>  //;. 

4  Koldewey,  Zeitschrift  fiii  .  ii.  406  sea. 

avcls  and  Researches  in  Chaldaea  and  Susiana,  chapter  xviii. 


THE    VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER   BEAT//.  597 

of  bodies.1  If  it  should  turn  out  that  cremation  prevailed  for  a 
certain  period,  the  fashion,  we  may  feel  certain,  was  clue  to 
foreign  influences,  but  it  is  more  than  questionable  whether  it 
was  ever  introduced  at  all.  Certainly,  earth-burial  is  the  char- 
acteristically Babylonian  (and  general  Semitic)  method  of  dis- 
posing of  the  dead. 

The  characteristic  feature  of  the  Babylonian  tombs  is  their 
simplicity.  The  dead  body,  which  was  often  covered  with 
palm  woods,  was  placed  generally  on  the  side  —  though 
occasionally  on  the  back  —  on  a  board  of  wood,  or  wrapped 
in  a  mat  of  reeds  or  palm  fibers,  and  covered  with  a  tub-shaped 
clay  dish.  On  the  dish  there  was  frequently  an  ornamental 
design,  but  beyond  this,  there  was  no  attempt  at  decoration. 
The  body  was  frequently  pressed  together  in  order  to  be  brought 
within  the  compass  of  the  dish.  Sometimes,  the  knees  were 
pulled  up  or  the  body  placed  in  a  semi-sitting  posture,  and 
there  are  indications  that  the  bodies  were  often  divided  into 
two  or  three  parts  prior  to  burial.  On  the  stele  of  vultures,2 
representing  the  triumph  of  Eanna-tuma  over  his  enemies, 
attendants  are  seen  building  a  mound  over  the  symmetrically 
arranged  bodies  of  the  king's  soldiers  slain  in  battle.  The 
monument  belongs  to  the  most  ancient  period  of  Babylonian 
history,  and  we  are  justified,  therefore,  in  regarding  this  method 
of  earth-burial  as  the  oldest  in  vogue.  The  dead,  it  would 
seem,  are  placed  on  the  ground,  or  near  the  surface,  and 
covered  with  a  mound.  This  custom  would  account  for  the 
use  of  a  dish  to  cover  the  body  after  it  became  customary  to 
place  the  dead  in  small  houses  or  vaults  built  for  the  purpose. 
The  shape  of  the  dish,  or  tub,  recalls  the  earth-mound  over  the 
dead,  and  the  tenacity  of  conventional  methods  is  apparent  in 
the  modern  custom,  even  among  Western  nations,  of  raising  a 

1  Peters'  Nippur,  ii.  234.  Other  mounds  examined  by  Peters  between  Warka  and 
Nippur  bear  out  the  conclusion. 

2  De  Sarzec,  Decouvertes  en  Chaldee,  pi.  3. 


598  BAB  )  /.  t  WIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

mound  over  the  grave,  even  though  the  body  is  placed  at  a 
depth  of  six  feet  and  more  below  the  surface.  A  modification 
of  the  form  of  coffin  was  the  jar  into  which  the  body  was  forced. 
To  do  this,  still  greater  violence  had  to  be  employed.  Instead  of 
one  jar,  two  were  also  used,  the  body  placed  partly  in  one,  partly 
in  the  other,  and  the  two  were  then  joined  with  bitumen.  In 
the  Persian  period,  a  slipper-shaped  coffin  was  used,  into  which 
the  body  was  inserted  through  an  aperture  at  one  end  ;  but  there 
is  no  evidence  that  the  Babylonians  employed  this  method. 
With  the  bodies,  various  objects  were  interred,  many  of  which 
had  a  special  significance.  Except,  perhaps,  at  a  very  early 
period  1  the  dead  were  not  buried  naked,  but  covered  with  a 
garment.  The  seal  cylinder,  which,  as  Herodotus  tells  us,2 
every  person  of  position  carried  about  his  person,  and 
which,  when  impressed  on  a  clay  tablet,  served  as  his  signa- 
ture, was  buried  with  the  dead  as  an  ornament  that  had  a  per- 
sonal value.  The  staff  which  the  man  was  in  the  habit  of 
carrying  is  found  in  the  grave,  and  also  such  weapons  as  arrow- 
heads and  spears.  Various  ornaments  of  copper,  iron,  gold, 
and  stone,  rings,  necklaces  or  bands  of  gold  were  probably 
placed  with  the  dead  as  a  sign  of  affection,  not  because  of  any 
belief  that  the  deceased  needed  these  objects.  Toys,  too,  are 
found  in  the  graves,  and  we  may  assume  that  these  were  placed 
in  the  tombs  of  children.  The  frequent  presence  of  shells  in 
the  tombs  is  still  unexplained.  On  the  other  hand,  remains 
of  food,  dates,  grain,  poultry,  and  fish,  that  have  been  found 
in  graves  belonging  to  various  periods,  may  be  regarded  as 
a  proof  for  the  existence  of  the  belief  that  the  dead  could 
er  pangs  of  hunger.  The  closing,  lines  of  the  Gilgamesh 
epic,3  where  the  fate  of  the  neglected  dead  is  portrayed,  con- 
firms this  view.  But  such  remains  are  more  frequent  in  the 
early  graves  than  in  those  of  a  later  time.      Animal  sacrifices  at 

1  On  the  stele  of  vultures,  the  dead  are  naked. 

2  Book  I,  §  195.  3  See  p.  512. 


THE    VIEWS  OF  LIFE  AFTER   DEATH.  599 

the  grave  appear  to  be  very  old.1     Offerings  of  food  and  water 
were  made  to  the  dead,  not  only  at  the   time   of  the  burial, 
but  afterwards  by  surviving  relatives.     The  son  performs  the 
office  of  pouring  out  water  to  the  memory  of  his  father.2     The 
close  of  the  legend  of  Ishtar's  journey  suggests  that  the  fes- 
tival of  Tammuz  was  selected   as  an  'All-Souls'   day.      The 
weeping  for  the  lost  Tammuz  served  as  an  appropriate  link 
for  combining  with  the  mourning  for  the  god  the  lament  for 
the   dead.     The  water  jar  is  never  absent  in   the  old   Baby- 
lonian tombs,  and  by  the  side  of  the  jar  the  bowl  of  clay  or 
bronze  is  found,  and  which  probably  served  the  same  purpose 
as  a  drinking  utensil  for  the  dead.     How  early  it  became  cus- 
tomary to  bury  the  dead  together  we  do  not  know.     It  may  be 
that  at  One  time  they  were  buried  beneath  the  dwellings  that 
they  occupied  when  alive,  under  the  threshold  or  in  the  walls;"' 
but  the  conception  of  Aralu  as  a  great  gathering-place  of  the 
dead  would  hardly  have  arisen,  unless  the  '  city  of  the  dead  '  by 
the  side  of  the  '  city  of  the  living '  had  become  an  established 
custom.     We  are,  therefore,  justified  in  assuming  that  as  the 
villages  grew  into  towns,  the  huddling  together  of  the  living 
suggested  placing  the  dead  together  in  a  portion  of  the  town 
set  aside  for  the  purpose.     In  comparison  with  the  elaborate 
constructions  in  the  Egyptian  cities  of  the  dead,  the  Babylonian 
necropolis  was  a  shabby  affair.     Vaults,  rarely  more  than  five 
feet  high,  served  as  the  place  where  the  dead  were  deposited. 
These  vaults  were  constructed  of  bricks,  and  an  extended  series 
of  them  gave  to  the  necropolis  the  appearance  of  little  houses, 
suggestive  of  primitive  mud  huts.     This  simplicity,  due  in  the 
first  instance  to  the  lack  of  stone  as  building  material  in  Baby- 
lonia, corresponded  to    the  very  simple  character  which    the 

« 

1  Such  sacrifices  are  pictured  on  the  stele  of  vultures. 

2  1IIR.  43,  col.  iv.  1.  20  ;   Belser,  Beitrdge  zur  Assyriologie,  ii.  175,  18  ;   Pinches, 
Babylonian  Texts,  p.  iS. 

3  For  this  custom  see  Trumbull,  The  Threshold  Covenant,  p.  25  ;  Peters'  Nippur, 

ii.  202,  20V 


(,00  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

dwelling-house  retained.  The  one-story  type  of  dwelling,  with 
simple  partitions,  prevailed  to  the  latest  period.  It  was  only 
in  the  temples  and  palaces  that  architectural  skill  was  developed. 
In  Assyria,  although  soft  stone  was  accessible,  the  example  of 
Babylonia  was  slavishly  followed.  It  is  due  to  this  that  so  few 
traces  of  private  houses  have  been  found  in  the  Mesopotamian 
explorations,1  and  the  almost  primitive  character  of  the  graves 

more  primitive,  by  virtue  of  the  strength  of  the  conservative 
instinct  in  everything  connected  with  the  dead,  than  the  dwell- 
ings of  the  living  -readily  accounts  for  their  nearly  complete 
destruction.  Simple  as  the  houses  of  the  dead  were,  they  were 
yet  carefully  guarded  against  the  invasion  of  air  and  dust;  and 
even  after  centuries  of  neglect  the  contents  are  found  to  be 
perfectly  dry. 

The  explorations  at  Nippur  show  that  the  tub  and  bowl  forms 
of  the  coffin  continued  to  be  used  during  the  period  extending 
from  Hammurabi  to  Nabonnedos.  In  later  times,  it  would 
appear,  the  custom  of  placing  food  and  drink  with  the  dead 
fell  into  disuse.2  We  may  perhaps  find  that,  as  was  the  case  in 
Egypt,  symbolical  representations  of  food — a  clay  plate  with 
the  food  modeled  in  clay  —  took  the  place  of  the  old  custom. 
Fewer  utensils,  too,  are  found  in  the  graves  of  the  later  period  ; 
but,  on  the  other  hand,  ornaments  increase,  until,  when  we 
reach  the  Persian  and  Greek  periods,  mirrors  are  quite  com- 
mon,  .mil  golden  veils  are  placed  over  the  dead,  while  handsome 
earrings,  breastpins,  and  necklaces  indicate  the  growth  of  this 
luxurious  display.  The  clay  coffins,  too,  are  beautifully  glazed 
and  ornamented  with  elaborate  designs.  A  trace  of  foreign - 
perhaps  <  '.raeco- Egyptian  —  influence  may  be  seen  in  the  human 
d  modeled  on  the  coffin.  Naturally,  at  all  times  the  differ- 
ent ranks  occupied  by  the  dead  involved  more  or  less  modifica- 
tions of  the  prevailing  customs.     The  rich  were  placed  in  more 

'  Reci  "  H  has  discovered  some  private  dwellings  .it  Abu  Habba,  which  will 

1  in  his  forthcoming  volume  on  his  explorations  at  that  place.     See  also 
Peters'  Nippur,  ii.  200,  >oi.  2  Peters'  Nippur,  ii.  220. 


THE    VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH.  601 

carefully  built  vaults  than  the  poor.  The  coverings  and  orna- 
ments varied  with  the  station  of  the  deceased  ;  but  in  general  it 
may  be  said  that,  during  the  earlier  periods  of  Babylonian- 
Assyrian  history,  simplicity  was  the  rule,  and  the  objects  placed 
in  the  tombs  were  more  carefully  chosen  with  reference  to  the 
needs  of  the  dead  and  the  career  that  he  led  while  living,  while 
the  tendency  in  later  times  was  away  from  the  religious  beliefs 
that  gave  rise  to  the  funeral  customs,  and  in  the  direction  of 
luxury  and  display.  This  development,  however,  is  independ- 
ent of  proper  burial,  upon  which,  as  we  have  already  had  occa- 
sion to  see,  great  stress  was  at  all  times  laid.  The  greatest 
misfortune  that  could  happen  to  a  dead  person  was  for  his  body 
to  remain  overground,  or  to  be  removed  from  the  tomb  and 
exposed  to  the  light  of  day.  In  the  early  monument  of  Baby- 
lonian art,  —  the  '  stele  of  vultures,' 1 —  already  referred  to,  the 
dead  foes  are  punished  by  being  stripped  of  their  clothing  and 
exposed  to  the  attack  of  vultures,  who  are  seen  carrying  off 
human  heads,  legs,  and  arms.  To  emphasize  the  contrast,  the 
king's  soldiers  are  portrayed  as  being  buried  in  symmetrical 
rows,  the  head  of  each  body  being  covered  by  the  feet  of  the 
body  in  the  row  above.  When  the  Babylonian  and  Assyrian 
kings  wish  to  curse  the  one  who  might  venture  to  destroy  the 
monuments  set  up  by  them,  they  know  of  nothing  stronger 
than  to  express  the  hope 

That  his  body  may  be  cast  aside, 
No  grave  be  his  lot.2 

The  kings  punished  their  enemies  by  leaving  their  bodies  to 
rot  in  the  sun,  or  they  exposed  them  on  poles  as  a  warning  to 
rebels.  Ashurbanabal  on  one  occasion  speaks  of  having 
scattered  the  corpses  of  the  enemy's  host -Mike  thorns  and 
thistles '   over   the    battlefield.'1     The    corpses  of    the    Babylo- 


1  See  p.  597.     The  date  of  the  monument  is  prior  to  Sargon  ;   i.e.,  earlier  than 

10  B.C. 

2  VR.  61,  col.  vi.  11.  54,  55.  8  Rassam  Cylinder,  col.  iii.  1.  40. 


3S00  B.C. 


602  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

nians  who  had  aided  in  the  rebellion  against  the  king  were 
given  'to  dogs,  swine,  to  the  birds  of  heaven,  to  the  fish  of 
the  sea  *  as  food.1  The  same  king  takes  pleasure  in  relating 
that  he  destroyed  the  graves  of  Elamitic  kings  and  dragged 
the  bodies  from  their  resting-place2  to  Assyria.  Their  shades, 
he  adds,  were  thus  unprotected.  No  food  could  be  tendered 
them  and  no  sacrifices  offered  in  their  honor.  Sennach- 
erib, after  he  has  crushed  a  rebellion  that  broke  out  in  Baby- 
lonia, takes  a  terrible  revenge  upon  the  instigator  of  the 
opposition,  Mardukbaliddin,  by  removing  the  bodies  of  the 
hitter's  ancestors  from  the  vaults  wherein  they  were  deposited. 
The  bones  of  an  enemy  are  enumerated  by  Ashurbanabal 
among  the  spoil  secured  by  him.3  The  mutilation  of  the  dead 
body  was  also  a  terrible  punishment  to  the  dead,4  and  we  are 
told  that  the  person  who  disturbed  a  grave  is  not  to  be  per- 
mittee! to  enter  the  temple.  The  desecration  of  the  grave 
affected  not  only  the  individual  whose  rest  was  thus  disturbed, 
and  who,  in  consequence,  suffered  pangs  of  hunger  and  other 
miseries,  hut  reached  the  survivors  as  well.  The  unburied  or 
disentombed  shade  assumed  the  form  of  a  demon,"'  and  afflicted 
the  living. 

Of  the  ceremonies  incidental  to  burial,  the  bronze  tablet 
above  described  affords  us  at  least  a  glimpse.  The  dead  were 
placed  on  a  bier  and  wrapped  in  some  kind  of  a  cover.  Priests 
were  called  in  to  perform  rites  of  purification.  One  of  the 
priests,  it  will  be  recalled,'1  is  clad  in  a  fish  costume.  The 
fish   is  the  symbol  of   Ea,  the  god  of  the  deep,  who  becomes 

1  Rassam  (  \  Under,  i  ol.  iv.  11.  74-76. 
'-'  lb.  col.  vi.  11.  70-76. 

:i  Rassam  Cylinder,  col.  iii.  1.  64.     The  favorite  mutilation  was  the  cutting  off  of  , 

t1"'  head.    1  m  one  ol  the  sculptured  slabs  from  the  palace  oi  Ashurbanabal,  a  pyramid 

"'  '"  ["he  1  utting  off  of  the  hands,  the  lips,  the  nose,  and  the  male 

well  .is  the  flaying  of  the  skin,  were  also  practised.     (See  Sennacherib's 

unt  IK.  42,  col.  vi.  11.  1  6;  Rassam  Cylinder  (Ashurbanabal),  ii.  4  and  iv.  136.) 

*  Rassam  1  lylinder,  col.  \ ii.  11.  46-4S.        5  tkimmu.     See  p.  580.        c  See  p.  57S. 


THE    VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH.  603 

the  chief  deity  appealed  to  in  incantations  involving  the  use 
of  water.  The  priest  assumes  the  role  of  Ea,  as  it  were,  by 
the  symbolical  dress  that  he  puts  on.  The  rites  appear  to 
consist  of  the  burning  of  incense  and  the  sprinkling  of  water. 
It  does  not  of  course  follow  that  everywhere  the  same  custom 
was  observed,  but  we  may  at  least  be  certain  that  the  priest 
played  an  important  part  in  the  last  honors  paid  to  the  dead. 
The  purification  was  intended  to  protect  the  dead  from  the  evil 
spirits  that  infest  the  grave.  The  demons  of  disease,  it  is  true, 
could  no  longer  trouble  him.  They  had  done  their  work  as 
messengers  of  Allatu.  But  there  were  other  demons  who  were 
greedy  for  the  blood  and  flesh  of  the  dead.  Though  the  dead 
had  passed  out  of  the  control  of  the  gods,  the  latter  had  at 
least  the  power  to  restrain  the  demons  from  disturbing  the 
peace  of  the  grave. 

In  the  earlier  days,  when  the  bodies  were  placed  on  the 
ground  or  only  a  short  distance  below  it,  the  building  of  the 
grave-mound  was  a  ceremony  to  which  importance  was  at- 
tached. In  the  stele  of  vultures,  attendants  are  portrayed  — 
perhaps  priests  —  with  baskets  on  their  heads,  containing  the 
earth  to  be  placed  over  the  fallen  soldiers.1  These  attendants 
are  bare  to  the  waist.  The  removal  of  the  garments  is  prob- 
ably a  sign  of  mourning,  just  as  among  the  Hebrews  and  other 
Semites  it  was  customary  to  put  on  the  primitive  loin-cloth2  as 
a  sign  of  grief.  In  somewhat  later  times,  we  find  sorrowing 
relatives  tearing  their  clothing3  —  originally  tearing  off  their 
clothing  — and  cutting  their  hair  as  signs  of  mourning. 

1  Ileuzey  offers  another  explanation  of  the  scene  which  is  less  plausible.  (See 
De  Sarzec,  Decouvertes  en  Chaldee,  p.  98.) 

2  Hebrew  word  Sak.  The  other  rite  of  mourning  among  the  Hebrews,  the  putting 
of  earth  on  the  head  (e.g.,  I  Sam.  iv.  12;  II  Sam.  i.  2  and  xv.  32;  Neh.  ix.  1), 
is  a  survival  of  the  method  of  burial  as  portrayed  in  the  '  stele  of  vultures.'  The 
earth  was  originally  placed  in  a  basket  on  the  head  and  used  to  cover  the  dead  body. 

3  The  mourning  garb  mentioned  in  the  Adapa  legend  (p.  546)  is  probably  a '  torn  ' 
garment. 


604  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

The  formal  lament  for  the  dead  was  another  ceremony  upon 
which  stress  was  laid.  It  lasted  from  three  to  seven  days.1 
The  professional  wailers,  male  and  female,  can  be  traced  back 
to  the  earliest  days  of  Babylonian  history.  Gudea  speaks  of 
them.2  It  would  appear  that  at  this  early  period  persons  were 
engaged,  as  is  the  case  to  this  day  in  the  Orient,  to  sing  dirges 
in  memory  of  the  dead.3  The  function  is  one  that  belongs 
naturally  to  priests  and  priestesses;  and,  while  in  the  course 
of  time,  the  connection  with  the  temple  of  those  who  acted  as 
wailers  became  less  formal,  it  is  doubtful  whether  that  connec- 
tion was  ever  entirely  cut  off.  The  'dirge  singers,  male  and 
female,'  referred  to  in  the  story  of  Ishtar's  journey4  were  in 
the  service  of  some  temple.  The  hymns  to  Nergal 5  may  be 
taken  as  samples  of  the  Babylonian  dirges. 

The  praise  of  Nergal  and  Allatu  was  combined  with  the 
lament  for  the  sad  fate  of  the  dead.  Gilgamesh  weeping  for 
his  friend  Eabani <;  furnishes  an  illustration.  Gilgamesh  is 
described  as  stretched  out  on  the  ground.  The  same  custom  is 
referred  to  in  the  inscriptions  of  Cyrus,7  and  it  is  interesting  to 
note  that  a  similar  mode  of  manifesting  grief  still  prevails  in 
the  modern  Orient.  In  the  Babylonian  dirges,  it  would 
seem,  the  references  to  the  virtues  of  the  deceased  (which  are 
prominently  introduced  into  the  dirges  of  the  present  day) 
weic  lew.  The  refrain  forms  a  regular  feature  of  these  dirges, 
an  indication  that,  as  is  still  the  case  in  the  Orient,  there 
was  a  leader  who  sang  the  dirge,  while  the  chorus  chimed  in 
ai  the  proper  moment.  The  principle  of  the  stanza  of  two 
lines,  one  long  and  one  short,  that,  as  Budde  has  shown/ 
controls  the  wailing  songs  in  the  Old  Testament  (including  the 

1  Hagen,  Cyrus-Texte  (Bcitrage  ziir  Assyriologie,  ii.  219,  223). 

2  Inscription  I'..  col.  v.  11.  3-5.  8  //'. 

I  ane,  Modern  Egyptians,  ii.  286.  '■  See  p.  487. 

e  p.  575.  "  Hagen,  Cyrus-Texte,  il>.  and  p.  24S. 

Folk-Song  of   Israel."    The  New    World,  ii.    55;    also   his  article   "Has 
Hebriiische  Klagelied,"  Zeitschiift  fiir  Alttestamentliche  Wissenschaft,  ii.  1-52. 


THE    VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH.  605 

Book  of  Lamentations,  which  is  based  upon  this  very  custom 
of  lamenting  the  dead),  may  be  detected  in  the  Babylonian 
compositions.  The  accompaniment  of  musical  instruments  to 
the  dirges  also  appears  to  be  a  very  old  custom  in  Babylonia. 
In  the  story  of  Ishtar's  journey  the  wailers  are  called  upon  to 
strike  their  instruments.  What  kind  of  instruments  were  used 
in  ancient  times  we  do  not  know.  In  the  Assyrian  period,  the 
harp  and  flute  appear  to  be  the  most  common.1 

At  the  time  that  food  and  drink  were  placed  with  the 
dead  in  the  grave,  some  arrangements  must  have  been  made 
for  renewing  the  nourishment.  Entrances  to  tombs  have 
been  found,2  and  Koldewey  3  is  of  the  opinion  that  the  clay 
drains  found  in  quantities  in  the  tombs,  served  as  wells  to 
secure  a  supply  of  fresh  water  for  the  dead.  The  wailing 
for  the  dead  took  place  not  only  immediately  after  death, 
but  subsequently.  Ashurbanabal  speaks  of  visiting  the 
graves  of  his  ancestors.  He  appears  at  the  tombs  with  rent 
garments,  pours  out  a  libation  to  the  memory  of  the  dead,  and 
offers  up  a  prayer  addressed  to  them.  We  have  every  reason 
to  believe  that  the  graves  were  frequently  visited  by  the  sur- 
vivors. The  festival  of  Tammuz  became  an  occasion  4  when 
the  memory  of  those  who  had  entered  Aralu  was  recalled. 

While  there  are  many  details  connected  with  the  ceremonies 
for  the  dead  still  to  be  determined,  what  has  been  ascertained 
illustrates  how  closely  and  consistently  these  ceremonies  followed 
the  views  held  by  the  Babylonians  and  Assyrians  regarding  the 
life  after  death.  Everything  connected  with  death  is  gloomy. 
The  grave  is  as  dark  as  Aralu  ;  the  funeral  rites  consist  of 
dirges  that  lament  not  so  much  the  loss  sustained  by  the  living 
as  the  sad  fate  in  store  for  the  dead.      Not  a   ray  of  sunshine 

1  In  Egypt  at  present  the  tambourine  is  used  to  accompany  the  dirges  (Lane.  ib. 
p.  278).  4  See  above,  p.  575. 

2  Peters'  Nippur,  ii.  173,  and  elsewhere. 

3  Zeitschrift  fiir  Assyriologie,  ii.  414. 


606  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

illumines  the  darkness  that  surrounds  these  rites.  All  that  is 
hoped  for  is  to  protect  the  dead  against  the  attack  of  demons 
greedy  for  human  flesh,  to  secure  rest  for  the  body,  and  to 
guard  the  dead  against  hunger  and  thirst. 

It  is  almost  startling  to  note,  to  what  a  degree  the  views 
embodied  in  Old  Testament  writings  regarding  the  fate  of  the 
dead,  coincide  with  Babylonian  conceptions.  The  descriptions 
of  Sheol  found  in  Job,  in  the  Psalms,  in  Isaiah,  Ezekiel,  and 
elsewhere  are  hardly  to  be  distinguished  from  those  that  we 
have  encountered  in  Babylonian  literature.     For  Job,1  Sheol  is 

The  land  of  darkness  and  deep  shadows. 

The  land  of  densest  gloom  and  not  of  light. 

Even  where  there  is  a  gleam,  there  it  is  as  dark  night.2 

The  description  might  serve  as  a  paraphrase  of  the  opening 
lines  in  the  story  of  Ishtar's  journey.  The  Hebrew  Sheol  is 
situated,  like  the  Babylonian  Aralu,  deep  down  in  the  earth.8 
It  is  pictured  as  a  cavern.  The  entrance  to  it  is  through  gates 
that  are  provided  with  bolts.  Sheol  is  described  as  a  land  filled 
with  dust.  Silence  reigns  supreme.  It  is  the  gathering-place 
of  all  the  living,  without  exception.  He  who  sinks  into  Sheol 
does  not  rise  up  again. 

lie  does  not  return  to  his  house. 
His  place  knows  him  no  more.4 

It  is,  clearly,  '  a  land  without  return,'  as  the  Babylonians  con- 
ceived it.      The  condition  of  the  dead  in  Sheol  is  sad,  precisely 
as  the  Babylonians  pictured  the  life  in  Aralu.     The  dead  are 
designated  by  a  name6  that  indicates  their  weak  condition. 
Tiny  can  only  talk  in  whispers  or  they  chirp  like  birds.     Their 

1   Job,  X.  21,  22. 

-  /.c.  the  darkness  is  so  dense  that  no  light  can  remove  it. 

ii  Schwally,  Das  Lcben  nach  dem    '/'.•,/,-  nach  dm  Vorstel- 
lungenda    Wen  Israels,  pp.  59  68,  and  Jeremias'  Vorstellungen,  pp.  106-  u6. 
'  fob,  vii.  10.  5  Refa'im. 


THE    VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH  607 

gait  is  unsteady.  In  general,  they  are  pictured  as  lying  quiet, 
doomed  to  inactivity.  Death  is  lamented  as  an  evil.  The  dead 
have  passed  out  of  the  control  of  Yahwe,  whose  concern  is  with 
the  living.  Yahwe's  blessings  are  meted  out  in  this  world,  but 
not  in  Sheol.  These  blessings  consist  chiefly  of  long  life  and 
plenty  of  offspring.  The  dead  need  not  praise  Yahwe.  Eccle- 
siastes  —  although  a  late  composition  —  expresses  the  old  popu- 
lar view  in  the  summary  of  the  fate  of  the  dead,1  when  it  is 
said  that  the  dead  know  nothing  of  what  is  going  on.  Their 
memory  is  gone ;  they  neither  love  nor  hate,  and  they  are 
devoid  of  any  ambition.  There  is  no  planning,  no  wisdom,  no 
judgment  in  Sheol. 

Like  the  Babylonians,  the  Hebrews  also  believed  that  the 
condition  of  the  individual  at  the  time  of  death  was  an  index 
of  the  condition  in  store  for  him  in  Sheol.  He  who  goes  to 
Sheol  in  sorrow  is  pursued  by  sorrow  after  death.  Jacob  does 
not  want  to  go  down  to  Sheol  in  sorrow,2  because  he  knows 
that  in  that  case  sorrow  will  be  his  fate  after  death.  To  die 
neglected  by  one's  family  was  fatal  to  one's  well-being  in  Sheol. 
Life  in  Sheol  was  a  continuation,  in  a  measure,  of  the  earthly 
existence.  Hence,  the  warrior  is  buried  with  his  weapons  ; 
the  prophet  is  recognized  by  his  cloak;  the  kings  wear  their 
crowns  ;  the  people  of  various  lands  are  known  by  their  dress.3 
Even  deformities,  as  lameness,  follow  the  individual  into  the 
grave.  On  the  other  hand,  while  the  dead  were  weak  and 
generally  inactive,  although  capable  of  suffering,  they  were 
also  regarded  by  the  Hebrews  as  possessing  powers  superior 
to  those  of  the  living.  As  among  the  Babylonians,  the  dead 
stand  so  close  to  the  higher  powers  as  to  be  themselves 
possessed  of  divine  qualities.  Schwally  aptly  characterizes 
this  apparent  contradiction  by  saying  'that  the  dead  are 
Rcfa'hn  (weak),   but,  at    the    same    time,  Elohim,  i.e.,  divine 

1  Chapter  ix.  5-10.  '2  Gen.  xlii.  38. 

3  Incidentally,  a  proof  that  the  dead  were  not  buried  naked. 


608  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

beings.' '  Yahwe  has  no  power  over  the  dead,  but  they  receive 
some  of  his  qualities.  They  are  invoked  by  the  living.  The 
dead  can  furnish  oracles,  precisely  as  Yahwe  can.  They  not 
only  appear  to  the  living  in  dreams,  but  their  shades  can  be 
raised  up  from  Sheol.  A  certain  amount  of  worship  was  cer- 
tainly paid  to  the  dead  by  the  ancient  Hebrews. 

Naturally,  these  popular  views  were  subjected  to  considerable 
modification  with  the  development  of  the  religion  of  the  I  lebrews. 
While  many  features  remained,  as  is  shown  by  the  occurrence 
of  the  primitive  conception  of  Sheol  in  comparatively  late  pro- 
ductions, in  one  important  particular,  more  especially,  did  the 
spread  of  an  advanced  ethical  monotheism  lead  to  a  complete 
departure  from  the  Babylonian  conceptions.  While,  in  the 
popular  mind,  the  belief  that  there  was  no  escape  from  Sheol 
continued  for  a  long  time,  this  belief  was  inconsistent  with  the 
conception  of  a  Divine  Being,  who,  as  creator  and  sole  ruler  of 
the  universe,  had  control  of  the  dead  as  well  as  the  living. 
As  long  as  Yahwe  was  merely  one  god  among  many,  no  excep- 
tion was  made  of  the  rule  that  the  concern  of  the  gods  was 
with  the  living;  but  Yahwe  as  the  one  and  only  god,  could  not 
1"  pictured  as  limited  in  his  scope.  He  was  a  god  for  the  dead, 
as  well  as  for  the  living.  The  so-called  song  of  Hannah  "  ex- 
presses the  new  view  when  it  praises  Yahwe  as  the  one  'who 
kills  and  restores  to  life,  who  leads  to  Sheol,  and  who  can  lead 
out  of  it.'  Such  a  description  of  Yahwe  is  totally  different 
In >ni  the  Babylonians'  praise  of  Ninib,  Gula,  or  Marduk  as  the 
'restorer  of  the  dead  to  life,'  which  simply  meant  that  these 
gods  could  restrain  Allatu.  The  power  to  snatch  the  individual 
I  loin  the  grasp  of  Sheol  was  also  ascribed  to  the  national  god, 
Yahwe.  Elijah's  restoration  of  the  widow's  child3  to  life  is  an 
instance  of    this  power,   and    Jonah,4  who   praises  Yahwe  for 

1  Das  Lebcn  nach  dem  Tode,  etc.,  p.  67. 

2  '  S  mi.  ii.  Recognized  by  the  critics  as  an  insertion.  See  Budde,  Die  Biichcr 
Richtcr  und  Samuel^  p.  1  3  1  Kings,  xvii.  21,  22.  *  Chapter  ii.  7. 


THE    VIEWS   OF  LIFE   AFTER   DEATH.  609 

having  delivered  him  when  the  gates  of  Sheol  already  seemed 
bolted,  may  not  have  had  anything  more  in  mind  than  what  the 
Babylonians  meant ;  but  when  the  Psalmist,  to  indicate  the 
universal  rule  of  Yahwe,  exclaims 

If  I  mount  to  heaven,  thou  art  there, 

If  I  make  Sheol  my  couch,  thou  art  there,1 

the  departure  from  the  old  Hebrew  and  Babylonian  views  of 
the  limitation  of  divine  power  is  clearly  marked.  The  incon- 
sistency between  the  view  held  of  Yahwe  and  the  limitation  of 
his  power  was  not,  however,  always  recognized.  Hence,  even 
in  late  portions  of  the  Old  Testament,  we  find  views  of  the  life 
after  death  that  are  closely  allied  to  the  popular  notions  pre- 
vailing in  the  earlier  productions.  It  is  not,  indeed,  till  we 
reach  a  period  bordering  close  on  our  era  that  the  conflict 
between  the  old  and  the  new  is  brought  to  a  decided  issue  in 
the  disputes  of  the  sects  that  arose  in  Palestine.2  The  doctrines 
of  retribution  and  of  the  resurrection  of  the  dead  are  the  inevi- 
table consequences  of  the  later  ethical  faith  and  finally  triumph  ; 
but  the  old  views,  which  bring  the  ancient  Hebrews  into  such 
close  connection  with  the  Babylonians,  left  their  impress  in 
the  vagueness  that  for  a  long  time  characterized  these  doc- 
trines, even  after  their  promulgation.  The  persistency  of  the 
old  beliefs  is  a  proof  of  the  strong  hold  that  they  acquired,  as 
also  of  the  close  bond  uniting,  at  one  time  and  for  a  long  period, 
Hebrews  and  Babylonians.  What  applies  to  the  beliefs  regard- 
ing the  dead  holds  good  also  for  the  rites.  Many  a  modern 
Jewish  custom3  still  bears  witness  to  the  original  identity  of  the 
Hebrew  and  Babylonian  methods  of  disposing  of  and  caring 
for  the  dead. 

1  Psalms,  cxxxix.  S  ;  a  very  late  production. 

2  Schiirer,  A  History  of  the  Jewish  People  in  the   Time  of  Jesus  Christ,  vol.  ii. 
Division  ii.  pp.  3S,  39,  179-iSr. 

3  E.g.,  the  custom  still   in  vogue  among  Orthodox   Jews  of   placing  the  body 
wrapped  in  a  shroud  upon  a  board,  instead  of  in  a  coffin. 


610  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

There  is  but  one  explanation  for  this  close  agreement,  —  the 
same  explanation  that  was  given  for  the  identity  of  traditions 
regarding  the  creation  of  the  world,  and  for  the  various  other 
points  of  contact  between  the  two  peoples  that  we  have 
met  with.  When  the  Hebrew  clans  left  their  homes  in  the 
Euphrates  Valley,  they  carried  with  them  the  traditions,  beliefs, 
and  customs  that  were  current  in  that  district,  and  which  they 
shared  with  the  Babylonians.  Under  new  surroundings,  some 
new  features  were  added  to  the  traditions  and  beliefs,  but  the 
additions  did  not  obscure  the  distinctive  character  impressed 
upon  them  by  Babylonian  contact.  We  now  know  that  rela- 
tions with  Babylonia  were  never  entirely  broken  off  by  the 
Hebrews.  The  old  traditions  survived  all  vicissitudes.  They 
were  adapted  to  totally  changed  phases  of  belief,  but  the  ker- 
nel still  remained  Babylonian.  Beliefs  were  modified,  new 
doctrines  arose  ;  but,  with  a  happy  inconsistency,  the  old  was 
embodied  in  the  new.  Hence  it  happens,  that  in  order  to 
understand  the  Hebrews,  their  religion,  their  customs,  and 
even  their  manner  of  thought,  we  must  turn  to  Babylonia. 

Further  discoveries  beneath  the  mounds  of  Mesopotamia 
and  further  researches  in  Babylonian  literature  will  add  more 
evidence  to  the  indebtedness  of  the  Hebrews  to  Babylonia.  It 
will  be  found  that  in  the  sacrificial  ordinances  of  the  Penta- 
teuch, in  the  legal  regulations,  in  methods  of  justice  and 
punishment.  Babylonian  models  were  largely  followed,  or,  what 
is  an  equal  testimony  to  Babylonian  influence,  an  opposition  to 
Babylonian  methods  was  dominant.  It  is  not  strange  that  when 
by  a  curious  fate,  the  Hebrews  were  once  more  carried  back  to 
the  'great  river  of  Babylon,'  '  the  people  felt  so  thoroughly  at 
home  there.      It  was  only  the  poets  and  some   ardent  patriots 

'  Professor  Haupt  has  recently   shown  (in  a    paper  read  before  the   American 
M»il,   1897,   and   before  the  Eleventh    International  Congress   of 
ts,  September,    1897)   that  such  is  the    meaning   of   the   phrase,    Psalms. 
:i.  1.  which  is  ordinarily  translated  'rivers  of  Babylon.' 


THE    VIEWS   OF  LIFE    AFTER   DEATH.  611 

who  hung  their  harps  on  the  willows  and  sighed  for  a  return  to 
Zion.  The  Jewish  population  steadily  increased  in  Babylonia, 
and  soon  also  the  intellectual  activity  of  Babylonian  Jews 
outstripped  that  of  Palestine.1  The  finishing  touches  to  the 
structure  of  Judaism  were  given  in  Babylonia  —  on  the  soil 
where  the  foundations  were  laid. 

1  The   Talmud    of    Babylonia,  and   not   the    Talmud  of    Palestine,  became  the 
authoritative  work  in  the  Jewish  Church. 


CHAPTER   XXVI. 
THE    TEMPLES    AND    THE    CULT. 

The  religious  architecture  of  Babylonia  and  Assyria  is  of 
interest  chiefly  as  an  expression  of  the  religious  earnestness  of 
rulers  and  people,  and  only  in  a  minor  degree  as  a  manifesta- 
tion of  artistic  instincts.  The  lack  of  a  picturesque  building 
material  in  the  Euphrates  Valley  was  sufficient  to  check  the 
development  of  such  instincts.  Important  as  the  adaptation  of 
the  clay  soil  of  Babylonia  for  simple  construction  was  for  the 
growth  of  Babylonian  culture,  the  limitations  to  the  employment 
of  bricks  as  a  building  material  are  no  less  significant.  Ihering 
has  endeavored  to  show  l  by  an  argument  that  is  certainly  bril- 
liant and  almost  convincing,  that  the  settlement  of  Semites  in  a 
district,  the  soil  of  which  could  be  so  readily  used  to  replace 
the  primitive  habitations  of  man  by  solid  structures,  made  the 
Semites  the  teachers  of  the  Aryans  in  almost  everything  that 
pertains  to  civilization.  House-building  produced  the  art  of 
measuring,  led  to  more  elaborate  furnishings  of  the  habitation, 
i ted  various  trades,  introduced  social  distinctions,  necessi- 
tated divisions  of  time,  and  gave  the  stimulus  to  commercial 
intercourse.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  the  artistic  possibilities 
of  brick  structures  were  soon  exhausted.  The  house  could  be 
indefinitely  extended  in  length  and  even  height,  but  such  an 
extension  only  added  to  the  monotonous  effect.  With  clay  as 
a  building  material,  so  readily  moulded  into  any  desired  shape, 
and  that  could  be  baked,  if  need  be,  by  the  action  of  the  sun 
without  the  use  of  fire,  it  was  almost  as  easy  to  build  a  large 
house  as  a  small  one.  But  the  addition  of  rooms  and  wings 
and  stories   which   differentiated   the    house    from    the    palace 

1  Vorgeschichte  der  Indo-Europaer,  pp.  12(1-141. 


THE    TEMPLES   AND    THE    CULT.  613 

and  the  palace  from  the  temple,  served  to  make  hugeness  the 
index  of  grandeur.  The  best  specimens  of  the  religious  archi- 
tecture of  Babylonia  and  Assyria  are  characterized  by  such 
hugeness.  A  proportionate  increase  of  external  beauty  could 
only  be  secured  by  a  modification  of  architectural  style  ;  but 
the  conservative  instincts  of  the  people  discouraged  any  devia- 
tion from  the  conventional  shapes  of  the  temples,  which  appear 
indeed  to  have  been  firmly  established  long  before  the  days  of 
Hammurabi.  The  influence  of  conventionality  finds  a  striking 
illustration  in  the  manner  in  which  the  temples  of  Assyria 
follow  Babylonian  models.  Soft  and  hard  stone  suitable  for 
permanent  structures  was  easily  procured  in  the  mountainous 
district  adjacent  to  Assyria.  The  Assyrians  used  this  material 
for  statues,  altars,  and  for  the  slabs  with  which  they  decorated 
the  exterior  and  interior  walls  of  their  great  edifices.  Had 
they  also  employed  it  as  a  building  material,  we  should  have 
had  the  development  of  new  architectural  styles  ;  but  the 
Assyrians,  so  dependent  in  everything  pertaining  to  culture 
upon  the  south,  could  not  cut  themselves  loose  from  ancient 
traditions,  and  continued  to  erect  huge  piles  of  brick,  as  the 
homage  most  pleasing  in  the  eyes  of  their  gods.  The  Book 
of  Genesis  characterized  the  central  idea  of  the  Babylonian  and 
Assyrian  temples  when  it  represented  the  people  gathered  in 
the  valley  of  Shinar  —  that  is,  Babylonia  —  as  saying :  '  Come,  let 
us  build  a  city  and  a  tower  that  shall  reach  up  to  heaven.'  1 
The  Babylonian  and  Assyrian  kings  pride  themselves  upon  the 
height  of  their  temples.  Employing,  indeed,  almost  the  very 
same  phrase  that  we  find  in  the  Old  Testament,  they  boast  of 
having  made  the  tops  of  their  sacred  edifices  as  high  as 
'  heaven.' 2     The  temple  was  to  be  in  the  literal  sense  of  the 

1  Gen.  xi.  4. 

2  E.g.,  Tiglathpileser  I.,  col.  vii.  11.  102,  103 ;  Meissner,  Altbabylonisches  Priva- 
trecht,  no.  46;  Nebopolassar  Cylinder  (Hilprecht,  Old  Babylonian  Inscriptions, 
i.  1,  pis.  32,  35),  col.  i.  I.  38.  Or  'as  high  as  mountains'  :  e.g.,  Nebuchadnezzar  11., 
IR.  58,  col.  viii.  11.  61-63  !  and  so  frequently  the  Neo-Babylonian  kings. 


,,!  |  BAB  )  LONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

word  a  '  high  place.'  But,  apart  from  the  factor  of  natural 
growth,  there  was  a  special  reason  why  the  Babylonians  aimed 
in  make  their  sacred  edifices  high.  The  oldest  temple  of  Baby- 
lonia at  the  present  time  known  to  us,  the  temple  of  Bel  at  Nip- 
pur, hears  the  characteristic  name  of  E-Kur,  'mountain  house.' 
The  name  is  more  than  a  metaphor.  The  sacred  edifices  of 
Babylonia  were  intended  as  a  matter  of  fact  to  be  imitations  of 
mountains.  It  is  Jensen's  merit  to  have  suggested  the  explana- 
tion for  this  rather  surprising  ideal  of  the  Babylonian  temple.1 
According  to  Babylonian  notions,  it  will  be  recalled,  the  earth 
is  pictured  as  a  huge  mountain.  Among  other  names,  the 
earth  is  called  E-Kur,  '  mountain  house.'  The  popular  and 
early  theology  conceived  the  gods  as  sprung  from  the  earth. 
The\'  are  born  in  Kharsag-kurkura,2  '  the  mountain  of  all 
lands,'  which  is  again  naught  but  a  designation  for  the  earth, 
though  at  a  later  period  some  particular  part  of  the  earth,  some 
mountain  peak,  may  have  been  pictured  as  the  birthplace  of  the 
gods,  much  as  among  the  Indians,  Persians,  and  Greeks  we 
find  a  particular  mountain  singled  out  as  the  one  on  which  the 
gods  dwell.  The  transfer  of  the  gods  or  of  some  of  them  to 
places  in  the  heavens  was,  as  we  saw,3  a  scholastic  theory,  and 
not  a  popular  belief.  It  was  a  natural  association  of  ideas, 
accordingly,  that  led  the  Babylonians  to  give  to  their  temples 
the  form  of  the  dwelling  which  they  ascribed  to  their  gods.  The 
temple,  in  so  far  as  it  was  erected  to  serve  as  a  habitation  for 
the  god  and  an  homage  to  him,  was  to  be  the  reproduction  of 
the  cosmic  E-Kur,  -  '  a  mountain  house '  on  a  small  scale,  a 
miniature  Kharsag-kurkura.  In  confirmation  of  this  view,  it 
is  sufficient  to  point  out  that  E-Kur  is  not  merely  the  name  of 
the  temple  to  Bel  at  Nippur,  but  is  frequently  used  as  a  desig- 
nation for  temple  in  general ;   and,  moreover,  a  plural  is  formed 

1  fCostnologie,  pp.  [85    [95. 

-  Or  Kharsag-gal-kurkura  .'  see  p.  5 58. 

8  See  p.  458. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  615 

of  the  word  which  is  used  for  divinities.1  In  Assyria  we  find 
one  of  the  oldest  temples  bearing  the  name  E-kharsag-kurkura,2 
that  stamps  the  edifice  as  the  reproduction  of  the  '  mountain 
of  all  lands';  and  there  are  other  temples  that  likewise  bear 
names  3  in  which  the  idea  of  a  mountain  is  introduced. 

To  produce  the  mountain  effect,  a  mound  of  earth  was  piled 
up  and  on  this  mound  a  terrace  was  formed  that  served  as  the 
foundation  plane  for  the  temple  proper,  but  it  was  perfectly 
natural  also  that  instead  of  making  the  edifice  consist  of  one 
story,  a  second  was  superimposed  on  the  first  so  as  to  heighten 
the  resemblance  to  a  mountain.  The  outcome  of  this  ideal 
was  the  so-called  staged  tower,  known  as  the  zikkurat.  The 
name  signifies  simply  a  '  high '  edifice,  and  embodies  the  same 
idea  that  led  the  Canaanites  and  Hebrews  to  call  their  temples 
'  high  places.' 4 

The  oldest  zikkurat  as  yet  found  is  the  one  excavated  by 
Drs.  Peters  and  Haynes  at  Nippur,5  the  age  of  which  can  be 
traced  back  to  the  second  dynasty  of  Ur  —  about  2  7  00  b.c.  This 
appears  to  have  consisted  of  three  stages,  one  superimposed  on 
the  other.  There  is  a  reference  to  a  zikkurat  in  the  inscriptions 
of  Gudea  that  maybe  several  centuries  older;  but  since  beneath 
the  zikkurat  at  Nippur  remains  of  an  earlier  building  were 
found,  it  is  a  question  whether  the  staged  tower  represents  the 
oldest  type  of  a  Babylonian  temple.  At  no  time  does  any  special 
stress  appear  to  have  been  laid  upon  the  number  of  stories 
of  which  the  zikkurat  was  to  consist.  It  is  not  until  a  compar- 
atively late  period  that  rivalry  among  the  rulers  and  natural 
ambition  led  to  the  increase  of  the  superimposed  stages  until 
the   number   seven   was  reached.     The   older   zikkurats   were 

1  Ekurraii ;  Delitzsch,  Assyr.  Handw'drterbuch,  p.  718b. 

2  IR.  35,  no.  3,  22. 

3  See  below. 

.  4  Hebrew  Bamotk.     Through  the  opposition  of  the  Hebrew  prophets,  the  term 
acquires  distasteful  associations  that  were  originally  foreign  to  it. 
5  See  Peters'  Nippur,  ii.  124  seq. 


616  BABYLONIAA   ASSYRIAN   RELIGION: 

imposing  chiefly  because  of  the  elevation  of  the  terrace  on 
which  they  were  erected,  and  inasmuch  as  the  ideal  of  the 
temple  is  realized  to  all  practical  purposes  by  the  erection  of  a 
high  edifice  on  an  elevated  mound,  the  chief  stress  was  laid  upon 
the  height  of  the  terrace.  The  terrace,  in  a  certain  sense,  is  the 
original  zikkurat-  the  real' high  place' -  -  and  the  temple  of  one 
story  naturally  precedes  the  staged  to\ver,and  may  have  remained 
the  type  for  some  time  before  the  more  elaborate  structure  was 
evolved.  However  this  may  be,  we  are  justified  in  associating 
the  mountain  motif  with  the  beginnings  of  religious  architec- 
ture iu  the  Euphrates  Valley,  precisely  as  the  underlying  cos- 
mic notions  belong  to  the  earliest  period  of  which  we  have 
any  knowledge.  That  the  staged  tower  when  once  evolved  was 
regarded  as  the  most  satisfactory  expression  of  the  religious 
ideas  follows  from  the  fact  that  all  the  large  centers  of  Baby- 
lonia had  a  zikkurat  of  some  kind  dedicated  to  the  patron 
deity,  and  probably  many  of  the  smaller  places  likewise.  A  list 
of  zikkurats1  furnishes  the  names  of  no  less  than  twenty;  and 
while  all  of  the  important  places  are  included,  there  are  others 
which  do  not  appear  to  have  played  an  important  part  in  either 
the  religious  or  political  history  of  the  country,  and  which 
nevertheless  had  their  zikkurat.  To  judge  from  the  fact  that 
in  this  list  several  names  of  zikkurat  are  connected  with  one 
and  the  same  place,  more  than  one  zikkurat,  indeed,  could  be 
found  in  a  larire  reliinous  center.2 


'I'm.  Construction  and  Character  of  the  Zikkurats 

The  zikkurat  was  quadrangular  in  shape.  The  orientation 
of  the  four  corners  towards  the  four  cardinal  points  was  only 
approximate.8     Inasmuch   as   the  rulers   of   Babylonia  from  a 

1  1 1  K.  v i,  obvi 

however,  these  several  names  all  designate  a  single  zikkurat. 
;  Peters'  Nippur,  i.  246  ;  ii.  120. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  617 

very  early  period  call  themselves  'king  of  the  four  regions,'1  it 
has  been  supposed  that  the  quadrangular  shape  was  chosen 
designedly ;  but  there  is  no  proof  that  any  stress  was  laid  upon 
symbolism  of  this  kind,  or  upon  the  orientation  of  the  corners 
of  the  sacred  edifices.  More  attention  was  bestowed  upon 
making  the  brick  structure  huge  and  massive. 

The  height  of  the  zikkurats  varied.  Those  at  Nippur  and 
Ur  '2  appear  to  have  been  about  90  feet  high,  while  the  tower 
at  Borsippa  which  Sir  Henry  Rawlinson  carefully  examined3 
attained  a  height  of  140  feet.  The  base  of  this  zikkurat, 
which  may  be  regarded  as  a  specimen  of  the  tower  in  its  most 
elaborate  form,  was  a  quadrangular  mass  272  feet  square  and 
26  feet  high.  The  second  and  third  stories  were  of  equal 
height,  but  the  square  mass  diminished  with  each  story  by  42 
feet.  The  height  of  the  four  upper  stories  was  15  feet  each. 
At  the  same  time,  the  mass  diminished  steadily  at  the  rate  of 
42  feet,  so  that  the  seventh  story  consisted  of  a  mass  of  only  20 
feet  square.  Sargon's  zikkurat  at  Khorsabad  (the  suburb  of 
Nineveh)  was  about  the  same  height. 

The  average  number  of  stages  of  the  zikkurat  appears  to 
have  been  three,  as  at  Nippur  and  Ur,  or  four,  as  at  Larsa.4 
In  the  pictorial  representations  of  the  towers,5  we  similarly  find 
either  three  or  four.     In  these  smaller  zikkurats,  the  height  of 

1  For  the  meaning  of  this  phrase,  see  Winckler's  Altorientalische  Forschungen, 
iii.  20S-222,  and  Jensen's  Kosmologie,  p.  167. 

2  From  Heuzey's  note  in  De  Sarzec,  Decourvertes  en  Chaldee,  p.  31,  it  would 
appear  that  at  Lagash  there  was  a  zikkurat  of  modest  proportions,  but  Dr.  Peters  in- 
forms me  that  from  his  observations  at  Telloh,  he  questions  whether  the  building  in 
question  represents  a  zikkurat  at  all,  though,  as  we  know  from  other  sources,  a 
zikkurat  existed  there  in  the  days  of  Gudea. 

3  Journal  of the  Royal  Asiatic  Society,  xviii. 

*■  Of  Sargon's  zikkurat  at  Khorsabad,  also,  only  four  stories  have  been  found. 
Perrot  and  Chipiez  {History  of  Art  in  Chaldaea  and  Assyria,  i.  388)  suppose  that 
there  may  have  been  seven. 

5  E.<r.  Perrot  and  Chipiez,  ib.  p.  128.  Hommel,  Geschichte  Babyloniens  uuJ 
Assy riais,  p.  19. 


618  BAB  1  L  ONI  A .  \    ASS  i  'A' I A  N  RELIGION. 

e  u  li  tower,  as  in  the  first  three  stories  of  the  tower  at  Borsippa, 
appears  to  have  been  alike;  but  the  mass  diminished  in  pro- 
portion in  order  to  secure  a  space  for  a  staircase  leading  from 
one  story  to  the  other.  This  method  of  ascent  was  older  than 
the  winding  balustrade,  which  was  better  adapted  to  the  more 
elaborate  structures  of  later  times.  No  doubt,  as  the  towers 
increased  in  height,  other  variations  were  introduced-  as,  e.g., 
in  the  proportions  of  the  stories  —  without  interfering  with  the 
essential  principle  of  the  zikkurat. 

The  ungainly  appearance  presented  by  the  huge  towers  was 
somewhat  relieved  by  decorations  of  the  friezes  and  by  the 
judicious  use  of  color.  Enameled  bricks  of  bright  hues,  such 
as  yellow  and  blue,1  became  common,  and  in  the  case  of  some 
of  the  towers  it  would  appear  that  a  different  color  was  chosen 
for  each  story.  Whether  all  the  bricks  in  each  story  were  col- 
ored or  only  those  at  the  edge,  or,  perhaps,  some  rows,  it  is 
impossible  to  say.  From  Herodotus'  description  of  the  seven 
concentric  walls  of  Ecbatana,2  in  which  each  wall  was  distin- 
guished by  a  certain  color,  the  conclusion  has  been  drawn  that 
the  same  colors  —  white,  black,  scarlet,  blue,  orange,  silver, 
and  gold-- were  employed  by  the  Babylonians  for  the  stages 
of  their  towers  ;  but  there  is  no  satisfactory  evidence  that  this 
was  the  case.  That  these  colors  were  brought  into  connection 
with  the  planets,  as  some  scholars  have  supposed,  is  highly 
improbable. 

As  already  pointed  out,  no  special  stress  seems  to  have  been 
laid  upon  the  number  of  stories  of  which  the  zikkurat  consisted, 
bul  the  natural  result  of  ambition  and  rivalry  among  builders 
tended  towards  an  increase  of  the  height,  and  this  end  could  be 
most  readily  attained  by  adding  to  the  number  of  stories.  Still, 
there  may  have  been  some  symbolism  which  led  to  the  choice 
of    thice.    four,   or   seven    stories,    inasmuch    as  these   numbers 

1  Pi  /  "■  i-  'i  |)  found  many  yellow-colored  bricks  at  Borsippa. 

-  Book  l.  §  98. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT  619 

have  a  sacred  import  among  so  many  nations.1     For  the  num- 
ber seven,  the  influence  of  cosmological  associations  is  quite 
clear.     The  two  most  famous  of  the  zikkurats  of  seven  stages 
were  those  in  Babylon  and  in  Borsippa,  opposite  Babylon.    The 
latter  bears  the  significant  name  E-ur-imin-an-ki,2  i.e.,  'the  house 
of   the   seven   directions   of  heaven   and  earth.'     The  'seven 
directions  '  were  interpreted  by  the  Babylonian  theologians  as 
a  reference  to  the  seven  great  celestial  bodies,  —  the  sun  and 
moon  and  the  five  planets   Ishtar,  Marduk,  Ninib,  Nergal,  and 
Nabu.3     To  each  of  these  gods  one  story  was  supposed  to  be 
dedicated,  and  the  tower  thus  became  a  cosmological  symbol, 
elaborating  in  theological  fashion  the  fundamental  idea  of  the 
zikkurat  as  a  reproduction  of  the  dwelling-place  of  the  gods. 
The  identification  of  the  five  gods  with  the  planets  is  a  proof 
of  the  scholastic  character  of  the  interpretation,  and  hence  of 
its  comparatively  late  origin.     This  interpretation  of  the  num- 
ber seven,   however,   was   not  the  only  one   proposed  in  the 
Babylonian  schools.     Two  much  older  towers   than  those  of 
Babylon  and  Borsippa  bear  names  in  which  '  seven  '  is  intro- 
duced.    One  of  these  is  the  zikkurat  to  Nin-girsu  at  Lagash, 
which  Gudea4  describes  as  '  the  house  of  seven  divisions  of  the 
world  ' ;  the  other,  the  tower  at  Uruk,5  which  bore  the  name 
'house  of  seven  zones.'     The  reference  in  both  cases  is,  as 
Jensen  has  shown,6  to  the  seven  concentric  zones  into  which 
the  earth  was  divided  by  the  Babylonians.     It  is  a  conception 
that  we  encounter  in  India  and  Persia,  and  that  survives  in  the 
seven  '  climates  '  into  which  the  world  was  divided  by  Greek 
and  Arabic  geographers.      It  seems  clear  that  this  interpreta- 

1  See  a  paper  by  E.  W.  Hopkins  on  The  Holy  Numbers  of  the  Rig-Veda  (Oriental 
Studies,  Boston,  1894,  pp.  141-147). 

2  Written  ideographical^,  as  the  names  of  the  zikkurats  and  of  all  sacred  edifices 

invariably  are. 

3  See  above,  p.  459. 

t  Inscription  G,  col.  i.  1.  14  •  D,  col.  ii.  1.  II. 

5  IIR.  50;  obverse  20.     See  p.  472. 

6  Kosntologie,  pp.  1 71-174. 


BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

tion  of  the  number  seven  is  older  than  the  one  which  identified 
ea<  h  story  with  one  of  the  planets.1  Both  interpretations  have 
.1  scholastic  aspect,  however,  and  the  very  fact  that  there 
two  interpretations,  justifies  the  suspicion  that  neither  fur- 
nishes the  real  explanation  why  the  number  seven  was  chosen. 

It  by  no  means  follows  from  the  names  borne  by  the  zikkur- 
ats  at  Lagash  and  Uruk  that  they  actually  consisted  of  seven 
stories.  The  'seven  divisions'  and  the  'seven  zones'  are 
merely  terms  equivalent  to  'universe.'  The  names  given  to 
the  towers  would  have  been  equally  appropriate  if  they  con- 
sisted -  as  they  probably  did  —  of  fewer  stories  than  seven. 
But,  on  the  other  hand,  the  introduction  of  the  number  seven 
into  the  names  may  be  regarded  as  a  factor  which  influenced 
ambitious  builders  to  make  the  number  of  stories  seven.  Over 
and  above  this,  however,  seven  was  chosen,  primarily,  because 
it  was  a  large  number,  and,  secondly,  because  it  was  a  sacred 
number,  —  sacred  in  part  because  large,  since  '  largeness  '  and 
'  sacredness  '  are  correlated  ideas  in  the  popular  phases  of  early 
religious  thought.  In  the  same  way,  it  is  because  seven  was 
popularly  sacred  that  the  world  was  divided  into  seven  zones 
and  that  the  planets  were  fixed  at  seven,  not  vice  7>crsa. 

The  opinion  of  some  scholars2  that  the  zikkurats  were  used 
for  astronomical  observations  remains  a  pure  conjecture,  of 
which  it  cannot  even  be  said  that  it  has  probability  in  its  favor. 
It  is  certain  that  the  astronomical  observations,  since  they  were 
conducted  by  the  priests,  were  made  in  the  temple  precincts  ; 
hut  a  small  room  at  the  top  of  a  pyramid  difficult  of  access 
seems  hardly  a  spot  adapted  for  the  purpose.  Moreover,  the 
sacred  character  of  the  zikkurat  speaks  against  the  supposition 

1  The  suggestion  is  worthy  of  consideration  whether  the  name'  seven  directions  of 

1  earth'  may  not  also  point  to  a  conception  of  seven  zmns  dividing  the 

11  as  the  earth.     One  is  reminded  of  the  'seven'  heavens  of  Arabic 

.  Kaulen,  Assyrien  und  Babylonien  (3d  edition),  p.  5S  ;  Vigouroux,  La 
Modernei  (4th  edition),  i.  35S. 


THE    TEMPLES   AND    THE    CULT  621 

that  it  should  have  been  put  to  such  constant  use,  and  for  pur- 
poses not  directly  connected  with  the  cult.  In  the  numerous 
astronomical  reports  that  we  have,  there  is  not  a  single  refer- 
ence from  which  one  could  conclude  that  the  observations 
reported  were  made  from  the  top  of  a  zikkurat. 

But,  on  the  other  hand,  it  would  appear  that  as  the  zikkurat 
developed  from  a  one-story  edifice  into  a  tower,  and  as  the 
number  of  the  stages  increased,  the  zikkurat  assumed  more  of 
.  an  ornamental  character.  While  the  ascent  of  the  tower  con- 
tinued to  be  regarded  to  the  latest  clays  as  a  sacred  duty, 
pleasing  in  the  eyes  of  the  deity,  for  the  ordinary  and  more 
practical  purposes  of  the  cult,  other  buildings  were  erected 
near  the  tower.  Within  the  temple  area  and  bordering  on  it 
there  were  smaller  shrines,  while  in  front  of  the  zikkurat  there 
was  a  large  open  place,  where  the  pilgrims  who  flocked  to  the 
sacred  city,  congregated.  The  sacrifices  which  formed  the 
essential  feature  of  worship  were  brought,  not  at  the  top  of 
the  zikkurat,  but  on  altars  that  were  erected  at  the  base. 

The  ideographic  designation  of  the  zikkurat  as  a  '  conspicu- 
ous house,' x  which  accords  admirably  with  the  motive  ascribed 
in  the  eleventh  chapter  of  Genesis  to  the  builders  of  a  zikkurat 
to  erect  an  edifice  that  "could  be  seen,"  supports  the  view  here 
taken  of  the  more  decorative  position  which  the  staged  tower 
came  to  occupy,  —  an  homage  to  the  gods  rather  than  a  place 
where  they  were  to  be  worshipped,  something  that  suggested 
the  dwelling-place  of  a  god,  to  be  visited  only  occasionally  by 
the  worshipper — in  short,  a  monument  forming  part  of  a 
religious  sanctuary,  but  not  coextensive  with  the  sanctuary. 
The  differentiation  that  thus  arose  between  the  dwelling-place 
of  the  god  and  the  place  where  he  was  to  be  worshipped  is  a 
perfectly  natural  one.  To  emphasize  the  fact  that  the  zikkurat 
was  the  temple  for  the  god,  a  small  room  was  built  at  the  top 

i  Lit.,  'house  to  be  seen,'  Igi-e-nir.  See,  e.g.,  VR.  29,  no.  4,  40,  and  Delitzsch, 
Assy?:  Haiidvoorterbuch,  p.  262. 


622  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

of  the  zikkurat,1  and  it  was  a  direct  consequence  of  this  same 
distinction  between  a  temple  for  the  gods  and  a  temple  for 
actual  worship  that  led  to  assigning  to  zikkurats  special  names, 
and  such  as  differed  from  the  designation  of  the  sacred  quarter 
of  which  the  zikkurat  formed  the  most  conspicuous  feature. 

'  Thus  the  name  E-Kur, '  mountain  house,'  though  evidently  an 
appropriate  designation  for  the  zikkurat,  becomes  the  term  for 
the  sacred  area  which  included  in  time  a  large  series  of  build- 
ings used  for  the  cult,  whereas  the  zikkurat  itself  receives  the 
special  name  of 'house  of  oracle  ';-  and  similarly  in  the  case  of 
the  various  other  religious  centers  of  Babylonia,  the  name  of 
the  zikkurat  is  distinct  from  that  of  the  sacred  quarter  —  the 
temple  in'  the  broader  sense. 

The  special  position  which  the  zikkurat  thus  came  to  occupy 
is,  of  course,  merely  an  outcome  of  the  growth  of  the  religious 
centers  of  the  country,  and  involves  no  departure  from  the 
religious  ideals  of  earlier  clays.  The  distinction  is  much  of  the 
same  order  as  we  find  in  the  case  of  the  Hebrew  temple  at 
Jerusalem,  where  the  court  in  which  the  worshippers  gathered 
was  distinct  from  the  '  holy  of  holies,'  which  was  originally 
regarded  as  the  dwelling  of  Yah  we,  and  in  later  times  was 
viewed  as  the  spot  where  he  manifested  himself.  The  name 
'  house  of  oracle  '  given  to  the  zikkurat  at  Nippur  is  a  valu- 
able  indication  of  the  special  sanctity  that  continued  to  be 

ill  ached  to  the  staged  tower. 

The  Temple  and  the  Sacred  Quarter. 

but  the  zikkurat,  while  the  most  characteristic  expression  of 
the  religious  spirit  of  babylonia,  was  by  no  means  the  only 
kind  of  sacred  edifice  that  prevailed. 

So  :tt  Babylon,  at  least,  according  to  Herodotus.     Traces  of  such  a  room  were 
found  in  connection  with  the  zikkurat  at  Nippur  (Peters,  Nippur,  ii.  122. 
2  Bit  /-irish/i.     UK.  50.  obverse.  (1.     Another  name  (or  perhaps  the   name  of  a 
cond  zikkurat  at  Nippur;  see  p.6i6,note2)  is  Im-kharsag,  i.e., '  mountain  of  awe.' 
Vippur,i\.  122)  of  the  names  is  inaccurate. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  623 

The  excavations  at  Nippur  have  afforded  us  for  the  first  time 
a  general  view  of  a  sacred  quarter  in  an  ancient  Babylonian 
city.     The  extent  of  the  quarter  was  considerable.    Dr.  Peters' 
estimate  is  eight  areas  for  the  zikkurat  and  surrounding  struc- 
tures, and  to  this  we  may  add  several  acres  more,  since  beyond 
the  limits  of  the  great  terrace  there  were  buildings  to  the  south- 
east and  southwest,  used  for  religious  purposes.     It  is  likely 
that  the  extent  of  E-Sagila  at  Babylon  was  even  greater.     Out- 
side of  the  temple  area  at  Nippur,  Peters  l  and  Haynes  unearthed 
a  court  of  considerable  size,  lined  with  brick  columns.     The 
court  was  open  to  the  sky,  but  the  columns  supported  a  roof 
which  was  apparently  of  wood.     Similar  courts  have  been  found 
elsewhere,  so  that  we    are   justified  in  regarding  the  Nippur 
structure  as  characteristic   of  the   architecture   of   Babylonia. 
The   court  was   attached  to   an  edifice  of   considerable  size, 
which  contained  among  other  things  rooms  in  which  the  temple 
records  were  kept.     The  entrance  to   the  court  was  by  a  large 
gateway,  supported  on  each  side  by  a  brick  column,  double  the 
diameter  of  those  that  surrounded  the  court.     While  the  nature 
of  the  building  is  not  perfectly  clear,  still  the  presence  of  the 
temple  archives  and  the  gateway  make  it  probable   that   the 
structure  was  used  in  connection  with  the  cult  of  some  deity 
worshipped  at  Nippur.     Lending  weight  to  this  supposition  are 
'  the  points  of  resemblance  between  this  structure  and  the  sacred 
edifices  of  the  ancient  Hebrews  and  Arabs.     A  court  of  sixty 
columns — made    of    wood,  quadrangular  in   shape,  with   the 
supports  and  tops  of  metal  —  was  the  characteristic  feature  of 
the  tabernacle.2     Within  this  court,  open  to  the  sky,  the  people 
gathered  for  worship.     The  altar  and  the  basin  for  ablutions 
stood  in  the  court,  while  the  holy  tent  containing  the  ark  was 
set  up  near  the  eastern  end  of  the  place.     Similarly  at  Mecca,3 

1  Peters'  Nippur,  ii.  chapter  vi. 

2  Schick,  Die  Stiftshiitte,  der  Tempel,  und  der  Tempelplatz  der  Jetzteeit,  pp.  S,  9. 

3  Snouck-Hurgronje  Mekka  (Atlas,  pi.  I).     The  present  structure,  though  com- 
paratively modern,  is  built  after  ancient  models. 


BABYLONIAN-ASS  J  'MAN  RELIGION. 

the  Kaaba,  the  pulpit,  and  the  sacred  fountain  are  grouped 
within  a  space  enclosed  on  all  sides  by  colonnades.  Again, 
surrounding  the  Solomonic  temple  on  three  sides  was  a  spa- 
(  ious  court.  This  court  was  enclosed  with  colonnades.1  It 
may  well  be,  therefore,  that  the  edifice  around  or  near  the 
line  court  of  columns  at  Nippur  was  a  sacred  structure, 
erected  in  honor  of  some  deity.  The  two  large  brick  col- 
umns at  the  entrance  to  the  Nippur  court  are  paralleled  in 
the  case  of  the  Solomonic  temple  by  the  two  large  columns, 
known  as  Yakhin  and  Boaz,  that  stood  at  the  gateway. 
These  names  are  as  yet  unexplained.  Their  symbolic  char- 
acter, apart  from  other  evidence,  may  be  concluded  from 
the  circumstance  that,  as  Schick  has  shown,2  the  columns 
stood  free,  and  did  not  serve  as  a  support  for  any  part 
of  the  gateway.3  There  is  no  need,  therefore,  for  any  hesita- 
tion in  comparing  these  two  columns,  whose  presence  in  the 
Solomonic  structure  is  certainly  due  to  foreign  influence,  to 
those  found  at  Nippur.4 

That  the  columns  at  Nippur  were  erected  in  accordance  with 
recognized  custom  follows  from  De  Sarzec's  discovery  of  two 
enormous  round  columns  within  the  sacred  quarter  of  Lagash.8 
In  the  light  of  Peters'  excavations,  the  significance  of  the 
columns  at  Lagash  becomes  clear.  Unfortunately,  De  Sar- 
zec's excavations  at  Lagash  at  the  point  of  the  mound  in 
question  were  interrupted,  but  he  gives  reasons  for  believing 
that  other  columns  existed   near  the  two  large  ones  found  by 

1  Schick,  ib.  pp.  125-131. 

-  Die  Stiftshiitte,der  Tempel,  und  der  Tempelplatz  der  felztzeit,  p.  82. 

:;  ( )n  the  significance  of  the  gate  in  sacred  edifi<  es,  sec  Trumbull,  The    Threshold 

'■><ut,  pp.  102-108. 
1  Dr.  Peters  is  of  the  opinion  that  at  the  entrance  to  the  temple  area  proper  at 
ilso  stood  two  large  columns. 
uvertcs en  Chaldi  e,  pp. 62-64.     lleuzey,  in  a  valuable  note,  already  suggests 
omparison  with  the  two  columns  oi   Solomon's  which  is  here  maintained  on  the 
basis  of  the  excavations  at  Nippur, 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  625 

him.1  There  is,  therefore,  every  reason  to  conclude  that  at 
Lagash,  as  at  Nippur  and  no  doubt  elsewhere,  the  two  columns 
belonged  to  a  great  gateway  leading  into  a  large  court  of  col- 
umns. That  these  columns  served  a  symbolic  purpose  in  the 
Babylonian  temple  as  they  did  at.  Jerusalem,  cannot  be  main- 
tained with  certainty,  but  is  eminently  likely. 

The  court  of  columns  was  surrounded  by  a  series  of  rooms. 
If  the  view  taken  of  the  building  is  correct,  these  rooms  were 
used  for  the  temple  administration.  However  this  may  be, 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  structures  of  various  size  found 
around  the  zikkurat  at  Nippur  served  as  dwellings  for  the 
priests  and  the  temple  attendants,  as  stalls  for  the  temple 
cattle,  as  shops  for  the  manufacture  and  sale  of  votive  objects, 
and  the  like.  Within  the  temple  area  proper  were  the  schools 
where  young  priests  were  trained  to  be  scribes,  and  received 
instructions  in  the  doctrines  and  rites.  The  astronomical 
observatories,  too,  were  situated  near  the  temple.  The  schools 
served,  as  they  still  do  in  the  orient,  as  the  gathering-place 
of  the  mature  scholars.  The  systematized  pantheon,  and  the 
cosmological  and  astronomical  systems  represent  the  outcome 
of  the  intellectual  activity  that  manifested  itself  within  the  sacred 
quarters  of  the  cities  of  Babylonia.  The  execution  of  justice 
being  in  the  hands  of  the  priests,  the  sacred  area  also  contained 
the  rooms  where  the  judges  sat.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that 
Gudea  mentions  a  hall  of  judgment  in  the  temple  to  Nin-girsu 
at  Laffash.  The  number  of  such  buildings  attached  to  the 
temple  precinct  varied,  of  course,  according  to  the  needs  and 
growth  of  each  place.  In  Nippur,  the  numbers  appear  to  have 
been  very  large.  We  may  assume,  likewise,  that  at  Sippar,.Uruk, 
Ur,  and  Larsa  the  zikkurat  was  the  center  of  a  considerable 
group  of  buildings,  while  at  Babylon  in  the  days  of  her  greatest 
power,  the  temple  area  of  E-Sagila  must  have  presented  the 
appearance  of  a  little  city  by  itself,  shut  off  from  the  rest  of  the 

i  lb.  P.  64. 


BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIC  I  OX. 

town  by  a  wall  which  invariably  enclosed  the  sacred  quarter. 
Wit hiii  this  large  wall  there  were  smaller  ones,  marking  the 
several  divisions  of  the  temple  buildings.     The  construction  of 

the  smaller  edifices  does  not  appear  to  have  varied  from  the 
ordinary  form  chosen  for  the  one-story  dwelling-houses  in  the 
city  proper.  The  material  used  for  all  structures  —  the  large 
ami  the  small  ones  —  was  brick.  In  earlier  times  the  bricks  were 
merely  dried  in  the  sun.  The  buildings,  as  a  consequence,  suf- 
fered much  from  the  influence  of  the  heat  and  rain,  and  required 
frequent  repairs.  Often  the  tower  would  crumble  away,  and  an 
entirely  new  edifice  would  have  to  be  erected.  The  later  cus- 
tom of  kiln-dried  bricks  was  an  improvement,  and  still  more 
solidity  was  insured  when  the  exterior  series  of  brick  was 
glazed.  In  the  older  buildings,  the  bricks  were  merely  piled 
together,  without  cement.  Afterwards  straw  was  mixed  with 
the  clay,  but  as  early  as  Gudea's  days  the  bitumen,  abounding 
in  the  valley,  became  the  common  cement  employed  in  all  edi- 
fices of  importance.  Wood  was  used  in  the  case  of  smaller 
sanctuaries  (as  also  in  palaces)  for  the  roof,  and  the  kings  often 
refer  with  pride  to  the  efforts  they  made  to  obtain  the  precious 
cedars  of  the  Lebanon  forests  for  their  building  enterprises. 
The  decoration  was  confined  largely  to  the  facades,  the  doors, 
and  the  floors.  A  pleasing  effect  also  was  produced  by  the 
judicious  distribution  of  glazed  and  enameled  bricks  in 
the  walls.  Colors  were  used  with  still  greater  lavishness  in  the 
decorations  of  the  interior.  The  brilliancy  was  heightened 
by  the  use  of  precious  stones  and  gold  and  silver  for  the  walls 
and  floors  and  ceilings.  The  aim  of  the  builders  was,  as  they 
constantly  tell  us,  to  make  the  buildings  as  brilliant  as  the 
sunlight.  The  decorations  of  the  brick  walls  and  floors  suggest 
textile  patterns,  and  to  account  for  this,  some  scholars  have 
supposed  that  prior  to  the  use  of  colored  bricks,  it  was  cus- 
tomary to  cover  the  walls  and  floors  of  temples  and  palaces 
with  draperies  and  rugs.      The  suggestion  lacks  proof,  but  has 


THE    TEMPLES   AND    THE    CULT.  627 

much  in  its  favor.  In  exterior  architecture  no  profound  changes 
were  ever  introduced,  but  within  the  prescribed  limits,  the 
builders  did  their  utmost  to  make  their  edifices  testimonials  of 
their  zeal  and  power.  They  imported  gold,  copper,  and  diorite 
from  the  Sinai  peninsula  and  Arabia,  .precious  stones  from  Ar- 
menia and  the  Upper  Euphrates,  wood  from  Bahrein  and  from 
various  parts  of  the  Amanus  range,  and  so  all  quarters  of  the 
ancient  world  of  culture  were  ransacked  for  contributions  to 
add  to  the  splendor  of  the  Babylonian  and  Assyrian  cities. 
Much  care  was  bestowed  in  the  course  of  time  upon  the  portals. 
The  wooden  gates  were  covered  with  bronze,  in  which  art  of 
decoration  great  skill  was  developed.1  The  columns  of  stone 
appear  only  in  Assyrian  edifices  as  decorations  in  the  front  of 
palaces,  supporting  a  portal  or  portico  that  projects  from  the 
temple  proper.2  The  introduction  appears  to  be  clue  to  foreign 
influence,  perhaps  Hittite.3 

To  determine  the  interior  arrangement  of  a  sacred  structure, 
we  have  two  small  Assyrian  temples,  excavated  by  Layard  at 
Nimrod,  to  serve  as  our  guide.4  A  long  hall  constituted  the 
chief  feature.  At  the  extreme  end  of  this  hall  was  a  small 
room,  in  which  stood  a  statue  of  the  god  to  whom  the  tem- 
ple was  dedicated.  This  room,  known  as  the  fapakhit  or 
parakku,  was  the  most  sacred  part  of  the  temple,  and  it  is 
doubtful  whether  any  but  the  king  or  the  highest  officials 
had  access  to  it.  Certainly,  no  one  could  approach  the 
presence  of  the  deity  without  the  mediation  of  a  priest. 
Both    terms    for    this     room    convey    the    idea    of    its    being 

1  The  test  example  for  Assyria  is  furnished  by  tin-  magnificent  bronze  gates  of 
Balawat,  now  in  the  British  Museum.  See  Birch  and  Pinches,  The  Bronze  Orna- 
ments of  the  Palace  Gates  of  Balawat  (London,  iSSi  I. 

2  See  the  illustrations  in  Perrot  and  Chipiez,  History  of  Art  in  Chaldea  and 

Assyria,  i.  142,  143. 

3  So  Puchstein  and  Friedrich,  but  see  Meissner-Ko.t,  V  ,  h  eimnal  das  Bilhillant 

und  die  Assyrische  S'dulc  (Leipzig,  1893). 

4  Discoveries  among  the  Rums  of  Nineveh  and  Babylon,  plan  2. 


BA B  YLOA '/./- \ -ASS \ RIA N  REL IG ION. 

"shut  off"1  from  the  rest  of  the  building,  precisely  as  the 
hoi}  of  holies  in  the  temple  of  Jerusalem  containing  the  ark, 
was  separated  from  the  central  hall.  Gudea2  describes  the 
papakhu  as  the  "dark"  (or  inner)  chamber. 

We  are  fortunate  in  having  a  pictorial  representation  of 
such  a  papakhu.  A  stone  tablet  found  at  Sippar3  represents 
Shamash  seated  in  the  "  holy  of  holies  "  of  the  temple  E-Bab- 
bara.  The  god  sits  on  a  low  throne.  In  front  of  him  is  an 
altar  tabic  on  which  rests  a  wheel  with  radiant  spokes,  —  a 
symbol  of  the  sun-god.  Into  this  sanctuary  the  worshipper, 
who  is  none  other  than  the  king  Nabubaliddin,  is  led  by  a 
priest.  The  king  is  at  pains  to  tell  us  in  the  inscription 
attached  to  the  design,  that  he  was  careful  to  restore  the  image 
of  Shamash  after  an  ancient  model,  and  his  motive  in  adding 
an  illustration  to  this  tablet  is  that  future  builders  may  have 
no  excuse  for  not  being  equally  careful.  We  may,  therefore, 
take  the  illustration  as  a  sample  of  the  general  character  of 
the  sacred  chambers  in  the  Babylonian  and  Assyrian  temples 
in  the  great  centers.  The  papakhu  was  decorated  with  great 
lavishness.  The  floors  and  walls  and  also  the  ceiling  were 
studded  with  precious  stones.  We  may  believe  Herodotus 4 
when  he  tells  us  that  the  statue  of  Marduk  in  his  temple  at 
Babylon  and  the  table  in  front  of  it  was  of  gold.  It  was  to  the 
papakhu  that  the  priests  retired  when  they  desired  to  obtain  an 
oracle  direct  from  the  god;  and  as  in  the  course  of  time  the 
sanctity  of  the  spot  increased,  we  may  well  suppose  that  the 
occasions  when  the  deity  was  directly  approached  in  his 
papakhu  became  rarer.  Through  the  influence  of  the  schools 
attached  to  the  Marduk  cult  at  Babylon,  the  New  Year's  Festival 


1  Papakhu  for    Pakhpakhu,  from  the  stem  pakku,  "to  close."     I'arakku.  from 
Parciku,  "  to  shut  off,  to  lock." 

2  Insi  ription  1  >.  col.  ii.  1.  9. 
:;  V  Rawlinson,  pi.  60. 

■'  Book  i.  sec.  1 


THE    TEMTLES  AND    THE    CULT.  629 

—  the  character  of  which  we  will  have  occasion  to  explain  later 
on  —  came  to  be  regarded  as  the  season  most  appropriate  for 
approaching  the  oracular  chamber.  During  this  festival,  Mar- 
duk  was  supposed  to  decide  the  fate  of  mankind  for  the  whole 
year,  and  the  intercession  of  the  priests  on  the  occasion  was 
fraught  with  great  importance. 

A  special  significance,  moreover,  came  to  be  attached  to  the 
sacred  chamber  in  the  Marduk  temple.  Complementing  in  a 
measure,  the  cosmological  associations  that  have  been  noted  in 
connection  with  the  zikkurat,  the  papakhu  of  Marduk  was 
regarded  as  an  imitation  of  a  cosmical  '  sacred  chamber.'  As 
the  zikkurat  represented  the  mountain  on  which  the  gods  were 
born  and  where  they  were  once  supposed  to  dwell,  so  the 
sacred  room  was  regarded  as  the  reproduction  of  a  portion  of 
the  great  mountain  where  the  gods  assembled  in  solemn  coun- 
cil. This  council  chamber  was  situated  at  the  eastern  end  of 
the  great  mountain,  and  was  known  as  Du-azagga,  that  is, 
1  brilliant  chamber.'  The  chamber  itself  constituted  the  inner- 
most recess  of  the  eastern  limit  of  the  mountain,  and  the 
special  part  of  the  mountain  in  which  it  lay  was  known  as 
Ubshu-kenna,  written  with  the  ideographic  equivalents  to 
'assembly  room.'  It  will  be  apparent  that  such  a  view 
of  the  papakhu  is  the  result  of  theological  speculation,  and 
is  not  due,  as  is  the  conception  of  the  zikkurat,  to  popular 
beliefs. 

The  assembly  of  the  gods  presupposes  a  systematization  of 
the  pantheon,  and  the  fact  that  it  is  only  the  papakhu  in  Mar- 
duk's  temple  which  is  known  as  Du-azagga1  is  a  sufficient 
indication  of  the  influences  at  work  which  produced  this  con- 
ception. In  the  creation  epic,  there  is  a  reference  to  the 
Ubshu-kenna2  which    shows  the    main   purpose    of   a   divine 

i  See  the   chief  passage,  IR.  54,  col.    ii.    11.    54-65;   another   name  is   E-Kua, 

'dwelling.' 
2  See  p.  423. 


630  A-  /  B  )  V.  ( >NIAN-ASS  i  AV.  IN  RELIGION. 

assembly  in  the  eyes  of  the  priests  of  Babylon.  The  gods 
meet  there  in  order  to  do  homage  to  Marduk.  They  gather 
around  the  victorious  vanquisher  of  Tiamat,  as  the  princes 
gather  round  the  throne  of  the  supreme  ruler,- — the  king  of 
liabylon  and  of  Babylonia. 

One  can  see,  however,  that,  as  is  generally  the  case  with 
theological  doctrines,  there  is  a  popular  starting-point  from 
which  these  views  were  developed.  The  Du-azagga  is  older 
than  the  I'bshu-kenna.  Situated  in  the  extreme  east,  the 
'brilliant  chamber'  is  evidently  the  place  whence  the  sun 
rises  in  the  morning.  A  hymn  to  Shamash  x  expressly  speaks 
of  the  sun  rising  out  of  the  Du-azagga,  and,  since  the  sun  also 
appears  to  rise  up  out  of  the  ocean,  the  Du-azagga  is  placed 
at  a  point  close  to  the  great  Apsu,  which  flows  underneath  the 
mountain.  In  confirmation  of  this  view,  a  syllabary2  identifies 
the  Du-azagga  with  the  Apsu.  Marduk,  by  virtue  of  his 
original  quality  as  a  solar  deity,  would  naturally  be  pictured  as 
coming  forth  from  Du-azagga.  In  this  sense  the  title  Mar- 
Du-azaga,3  'son  of  Du-azagga,'  is  applied  to  him,  just  as  he  is 
called  Mar  Apsi,  the  son  of  Apsu.  But  the  same  conception 
would  hold  good  of  Shamash,  of  Ninib,  and  of  some  other 
solar  deities,  though  not  of  all.  That  Du-azagga  came  to  be 
<  pecially  associated  with  Marduk  is  due  simply  to  the  preemi- 
nent rank  that  he  came  to  occupy.  Whether  there  was  also  a 
popular  basis  for  the  conception  of  an  I'bshu-kenna,  an 
iembly  room'  of  the  gods,  is  a  question  more  difficult  to 
answer.  Certainly,  the  view  that  the  gods  gathered  together 
in  oik-  place  belongs  to  an  age  which  attempted  to  fix,  at  least 
in  some  measure,  the  relationship  of  the  divine  beings  to  one 
another.     The  popular  phase  of  the  conception  of  a  general 

1  VR.  50,  col.  i.  1.  5. 
-  VR.  p.  No.  1.  Rev.  iS. 

:i  IVR.  57,  2.\a.     Jensen's  suggestion  (Kosmologie,  p.  242)10  read  Mar-duku  is  out 
oi  the  question. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  631 

assembly  house  could,  in  any  case,  hardly  have  proceeded  fur- 
ther than  the  assumption  of  some  particular  part  of  the  great 
mountain,  where  the  gods  were  wont  to  come  together.  The 
connection  of  this  assembly  place  with  the  Du-azagga  is  dis- 
tinctly the  work  of  the  theologians  of  Babylon.  In  their  desire 
to  make  Marduk  the  central  figure  of  the  pantheon,  they  bring 
all  the  gods  to  his  side.  The  Ubshu-kenna  is  thus  transferred 
to  the  region  whence  the  sun  issues  on  his  daily  journey.  The 
'  chamber  '  of  Marduk  becomes  the  most  sacred  spot  in  this 
region,  and  the  Ubshu-kenna  the  general  name  for  the  region 
itself.  As  Marduk  in  Babylon  was  surrounded  by  his  court,  so 
in  Ubshu-kenna  the  gods  assemble  to  pay  homage  to  the  one 
freely  acknowledged  by  them  as  the  greatest,  and  who  is 
pictured  as  sitting  on  his  throne  in  Du-azagga.  The  further 
speculation  which  brought  the  gods  together  yearly  on  the 
occasion  of  the  great  Marduk  festival  belongs  likewise,  and  as 
a  matter  of  course,  to  the  period  when  Marduk's  sway  was 
undisputed. 

The  ideas  that  were  thus  attached  to  the  papakhu  in  E-Sagila 
are  a  valuable  indication  of  the  sanctity  attached  to  that  part 
of  the  temple  where  the  god  sat  enthroned.  In  a  general  way, 
what  holds  good  of  Marduk's  papakhu  applies  to  every  sacred 
chamber  in  a  temple,  and  no  doubt  views  were  once  current  of 
the  papakhu  of  Bel  at  Nippur  and  of  the  'holy  of  holies'  in 
E-Babbara1  and  elsewhere  that  formed  in  some  measure,  a 
parallel  to  what  the  Marduk  priests  told  of  their  favorite 
sanctuary. 

Coming  back  now  to  the  large  hall  which  led  into  the 
papakhu,  the  absence  of  bas-reliefs  in  this  hall  in  the  case  of 
the  Assyrian  temples  excavated  by  Layard,  suggests  that  the 
walls  of  this  hall  were  not  lined  with  sculptured  slabs,  as  was 
the  case  in  the  large  rooms  of  the  palaces  ;  and  we  may  con- 

i  What  Jensen  says  (Kosmologie,  p.  10)  of  the  temple  at  Sippar  would  apply  to 
the  papakhu  in  the  temple,  rather  than  to  the  whole  structure. 


632  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

elude  that  in  Babylonian  temples,  likewise,  the  decoration  oi: 
the  walls  was  confined  as  a  general  thing  to  enameled  bricks, 
interspersed,  perhaps,  with  metallic  panels,  and  that  mythologi- 
cal scenes  —  such  as  the  contest  with  Tiamat  or  Gilgamesh's 
adventures-  were  only  occasionally  portrayed.  An  aim  which, 
as  the  rulers  themselves  tell  us  in  their  inscriptions,  they 
always  kept  in  view  was  to  make  both  the  exterior  and  interior 
of  the  temples  resplendent  with  brilliant  coloring-  -  "brilliant 
as  the  sun."  At  the  entrances  to  the  Assyrian  temples  stood 
lions,  chiseled  out  of  soft  limestone  or  the  harder  alabaster. 
At  Telloh  various  fragments  of  large  lion  heads  were  found,1 
so  that  there  is  every  reason  not  only  to  trace  this  custom  to 
Babylonia,  but  to  carry  it  back  to  a-very  early  period.  Besides 
the  lion,  a  favorite  religious  symbol,  as  we  have  seen,2  was  the 
hull,  and,  since  Nebuchadnezzar  speaks  of  retaining  the  "  bull  " 
statue  of  the  old  temple  to  Nana  (or  Ishtar)  at  Erech,  we  may 
suppose  that  the  representation  of  colossal  bulls  at  the  entrances 
to  the  temples  also  belongs  to  the  characteristic  features  of 
Babylonian  religious  architecture.  The  lion,  it  will  be  recalled, 
is  more  particularly  the  symbol  of  Nergal,  but  he  appears  origi- 
nally, like  the  bull,  to  have  been  a  symbol  of  other  gods  as 
well  perhaps,  indeed,  of  the  gods  in  general.  Similarly,  the 
eagle,  which  becomes  the  special  symbol  of  Ashur,  appears 
prominently  on  the  monuments  of  Entemena 3  and  other 
ancient  rulers,  centuries  before  the  Ashur  cult  comes  into 
prominence. 

In  the  large  court  in  front  of  the  zikkurats  there  stood 'the 
jars  used  in  connection  with  the  cult,  and  the  presence  of 
these  jars  furthermore  suggests  that  there  was  an  altar  in  the 
great  court,  precisely  as  in  the  case  of  the  Solomonic  temple.4 

1  De  Sarzec,  Decouvertes  en  ('huh!:,-,  pis.  24,  25  bis,  etc. 

e  p.  537- 
::  De    Sarzec,  Decouvertes  en    C/ta/dee,  pis.  4,  4  bis  and  43  bis.     On  the  latter, 
hulls,  limis,  and  eagle  in  combination. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  633 

In  the  larger  of  the  temples  found  by  Layard,  there  was  a 
smaller  hall  in  front  of  the  large  one.  We  may  assume  that 
the  same  was  the  case  with  the  larger  temples  of  Babylonia, 
and  this  three-fold  division  of  the  interior,  —  the  vestibule,  or 
pronaos,  the  main  hall,  or  naos,  and  the  papakhu, — further 
warrants  the  comparison  of  a  Babylonian  sacred  edifice  with 
the  Solomonic  temple,1  where  likewise  we  have  the  vestibule, 
the  hall  known  as  the  '  holy '  part,  and  the  '  holy  of  holies,'  the 
one  leading  into  the  other.  As  to  the  further  disposition  of 
the  rooms  in  the  main  temple,  we  must  be  content  to  wait  for 
further  excavations.  What  we  know  is  sufficient  to  warrant 
the  supposition  that  there  was  practical  uniformity  in  the 
interior  arrangement  of  the  Babylonian  and  Assyrian  temples. 
What  variation  there  existed  was  probably  confined  to  the 
decoration  of  the  walls,  doorways,  and  to  the  facades.  Mean- 
while, it  is  something  to  have  reached  general  results.  The 
zikkurat  was  surrounded  by  a  varying  number  of  shrines  that 
were  used  as  places  of  assembly  for  worshippers.  The  latter 
gathered  also  in  the  large  court  in  front  of  the  zikkurat,  where 
the  chief  altar  probably  stood.2  In  the  large  halls  of  the 
shrines,  there  were  in  all  probabilities  likewise  altars.  It  seems 
natural  to  suppose  that  the  hall  of  judgment,  mentioned  already 
in  Gudea's  inscription,3  was  attached  to  some  shrine.  Besides 
the  zikkurats  and  shrines,  there  were  smaller  structures  used 
as  dwellings  for  the  priests  and  temple  officials,  for  store- 
houses, for  the  archives,  and  as  stalls  for  the  animals  to  be  used 
in  the  sacrifices.     At  Nippur  a  smithy  was  found  near  the  tem- 

1  See  the  plan  in  Schick,  Die  Stiftshiitte,  pi.  5.  Layard  {Discoveries  among 
the  Ruins  of  Nineveh  and  Babylon,  pp.  642-64S)  points  out  some  analogies  between 
the  constructions  at  Nimrod  and  Solomon's  buildings,  but  what  lie  says  applies 
chiefly  to  the  palaces. 

2  Herodotus,  book  i.sec.  183,  speaks  of  two  altars  outside  of  the  temple  of  Marduk 
in  Babylon.  In  the  case  of  so  important  a  structure,  the  number  of  altars  was  natu- 
rally more  numerous. 

3  See  Heuzey's  note  in  De  Sarzec's  Dccouvcrtcs  en  Chaldcc,  p.  65. 


63  I  BAB  ) 'LONIAN  .  ISS )  'RIAN  RELIGION. 

pie  precinct.  There  were  workshops  near  the  temple  where 
the  furnishings  for  the  temple,  such  as  the  curtains  and  the 
utensils,  were  made,  and  there  were  magazines  where  votive 
tablets  and  offerings  were  manufactured  and  sold.  The  num- 
ber of  these  structures  varied,  naturally,  in  each  religious  cen- 
ter, and  increased  in  proportion  to  the  growth  of  the  center. 
The  zikkurat,  the  great  court,  the  shrines,  and  the  smaller 
structures  formed  a  sacred  precinct,  and  it  was  this  precinct  as 
a  whole  that  constituted  the  temple  in  the  larger  sense,  and 
received  some  appropriate  name.  Thus  E-Kur  at  Nippur, 
E  Sagila  at  Babylon,  E-Zida  at  Borsippa  are  used  to  denote 
the  entire  sacred  precinct  in  these  cities,  and  not  merely  the 
chief  structure.  The  zikkurat  always  had  a  special  name  of 
its  own. 

A  factor  that  contributed  largely  to  the  growth  of  the  sacred 
precinct  in  the  large  centers  was  the  circumstance  that  the 
political  importance  of  such  centers  as  Nippur,  Lagash,  Ur, 
Babylon,  and  Nineveh  led  the  rulers  to  group  around  the  wor- 
ship of  the  chief  deity,  the  cult  of  the  minor  ones  who  consti- 
tuted the  family  or  the  court  of  the  chief  god.  The  kings 
measured  their  importance  by  the  number  of  the  gods  upon 
whose  assistance  they  could  rely.  The  priests  came  to  the 
assistance  of  the  kings  in  connecting  the  gods  of  the  royal 
pantheon  in  such  a  way,  as  to  satisfy  the  pride  of  both  their 
royal  and  divine  masters.1  The  ambition  of  the  kings,  more 
especially  of  the  Assyrian  empire,  led  also  to  the  addition  of 
foreign  deities  to  the  pantheon.  For  these  also  shrines  were 
built  within  or  near  the  sacred  precinct. 

Gudea  sets  the  example  for  his  successors  by  parading  a 
large  pantheon  at  the  close  of  his  inscriptions,2  and  a  list  of 
temples  in    Lagash,  recently   published   by  Scheil,3  shows  that 


1  See  pp.  i' "i  seq. 

-  Sri'   p.    1 06. 

'*  Rccueil  tics  Travaux,  etc.,  xvii.  39. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT  635 

most,  if  not  all,  of  the  gods  invoked  by  the  ruler  had  a  sanc- 
tuary erected  in  his  or  her  honor.  There  were,  as  we  have 
seen,  several  quarters  in  Lagash,  and  therefore  several  sacred 
precincts,  so  that  we  cannot  be  certain  that  all  of  these  sanc- 
tuaries stood  in  one  and  the  same  quarter.  But,  since  the  list 
in  question  furnishes  the  name  of  no  less  than  thirteen  sacred 
edifices,  we  are  certain  that  as  many  as  four  or  five  smaller 
chapels  surrounded  the  precinct  in  which  stood  the  great 
temple  E-Ninnu,  sacred  to  Gudea's  chief  god  Ningirsu- 
Ninib. 

The  list  is  headed  by  the  sanctuary  to  Nin-girsu.  There 
follow  temples  to  Bau,  to  Nin-gishzida,  Nin-mar,  Nina,  Dumuzi, 
Nin-si-a,  Ga-sig-dug  known  to  us  from  the  inscriptions  of  Gudea, 
besides  others,  like  Shabra  (?),  Nin-sun,  Nin-tu,  that  appear 
here  for  the  first  time.  In  Nippur,  we  find  traces  of  the  wor- 
ship of  Belit  (or  Nin-lil),  of  Ninib,  and  of  Nusku,  though  with 
the  exception  of  the  first  named,  the  worship  of  these  gods  has 
not  been  traced  back  further  than  the  days  of  the  Cossean 
dynasty.  Subsequent  excavations  may,  of  course,  change  the 
present  aspect ;  but  one  gains  the  impression  from  the  most 
ancient  inscriptions  found  at  Nippur  that  at  an  early  period 
Bel  was  a  god  much  like  the  Hebrew  Yahwe,  "jealous"  of 
having  others  at  his  side.  Such  a  conception  would  help  to 
account  for  the  title  '  lord '  being  applied  to  him  above  all 
others,  and  also  aids  us  in  understanding  the  lasting  impression 
he  made  upon  the  people  of  Babylonia,  —  an  impression  so 
profound  that  when  the  time  came  for  En-lil  to  yield  his 
supremacy  to  Marduk,  no  better  means  could  be  found  of 
emphasizing  the  latter's  authority,  than  by  transferring  to  him 
the  names  and  titles  of  the  older  Bel.1  In  this  respect,  how- 
ever, Nippur  was  an  exception,  and  in  later  times  the  Bel  cult 
was  affected  by  the  same  influences  that  led  Gudea  to  group 
around  the  sanctuary  to  Nin-girsu,  edifices  sacred  to  other  gods 

1  See  pp.  140  seq. 


636  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RE  L/C  ION. 

and  goddesses.  Lugalzaggisi *  of  Erech  enumerates  an  exten- 
sive pantheon,-  which  contains  most  of  the  chief  deities,  and 
from  which  we  may  conclude  that  the  temple  of  Nana  was  simi- 
larly the  center  of  a  large  precinct  in  which  the  cult  of  other 
deities  was  carried  on.  When  we  come  to  the  cult  of  Marduk 
at  Babylon  and  of  Nairn  at  Borsippa,  the  inscriptions,  chiefly 
those  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  come  to  our  aid  in  showing  us  the 
arrangement  of  the  various  chapels  that  were  comprised  within 
the  sacred  precincts  of  E-Sagila  and  E-Zida,  respectively.  In 
the  first  place,  the  close  relationship  between  Marduk  and 
Nairn  was  emphasized  by  placing  a  papakhu  to  Nabu  in  the 
precinct  of  E-Sagila,  which  —  built  in  imitation  of  E-Zida  at 
Borsippa-  was  called  by  the  same  name.3  This  papakhu,  it 
would  seem,  was  independent  of  a  special  temple  to  Nabu 
known  as  EMakh-tila,  and  which  lay  in  Borsippa.  The  consort 
of  Marduk,  Sarpanitum,  likewise  had  her  temple  in  Babylon, 
and  naturally  close  to  the  chief  sanctuary  of  Marduk.4  '  Ea, 
the  father  of  Marduk,  had  a  small  sanctuary  known  as  E-kar- 
zaginna  in  the  sacred  precinct.5  It  does  not  follow,  of  course, 
that  all  the  temples  in  a  center  like  Babylon  or  Borsippa 
were  concentrated  in  one  place.  Indeed,  when  Nebuchad- 
nezzar speaks  of  three  temples  to  Gula  being  erected  in 
Borsippa,6  it  is  certain  that  they  could  not  have  been  within 
the  precinct  of  E-Zida,  and  so  the  temples  to  Shamash  and 
Ramman,  Sin  and  Ishtar,  as  well  as  to  Nabu  in  Babylon,  had 
an  independent  position  ;  but  we  are  at  least  warranted  in  con- 
cluding that  they  were  not  far  removed  from  E-Sagila,  and  so, 
likewise,  the  numerous  temples  enumerated  by  Nebuchadnezzar 

1  The  date  of  this  king  has  recently  been  pushed  down  by  Thureau-Dangin,  con- 
siderably later  than   the   date   assigned   to  him    by   Hilprecht   {Revue  Setniiique, 

V.  265-269).  -  See  p.  no. 

ebuchadnezzar,  [R.  65,  col.  i.  11.  34,  ;;. 
•>  'Ibis  is  to  be  concluded  from  Nebuchadnezzar,  id.  1.  32. 

le's  note,  Zeitsckrift  fin-  .  tssyriologie,  ii.  iN.).  note. 
c  IR-  55.  col.  iv.  11.  54-57. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  637 

as  erected  or  improved  by  him  in  Borsippa  were  not  far  distant 
from  Nabu's  sanctuary, — the  famous  E-Zida.     The  palaces  of 
the  kings  were  also  erected  near  the  temples.     In  Babylon,  we 
know  that  before  Nebuchadnezzar's  days,  the  palace  stood  so 
close  to  E-Sagila  that  an  enlargement  of  it  was  impossible  with- 
out encroaching  on  the   sacred    quarter.1      The    tendency  to 
combine  with  the  worship  of  the  chief  god,  the  cult  of  others  is 
as  characteristic  of   Assyrian  rulers    as    of   their   Babylonian 
predecessors.     We   are  fortunate  in  possessing  an   extensive 
list,2  enumerating  the  various  deities  worshipped  in  the  temples 
of  Assyria,  and  the  occasions  on  which  they  are  to  be  invoked. 
The   information   to  be  gained  from  this  list  is  all  the  more 
welcome  since   the   Assyrian   kings   are   chiefly    interested    in 
transmitting  an  account  of  their  military  expeditions,  and  tell 
us  comparatively  little  of  the  religious  edifices  in  their  capitols. 
From  this  list  we  learn  that  in  the  old  temple  sacred  to  Anu 
and  Ramman,3  in  the  city  of  Ashur — the  oldest  Assyrian  tem- 
ple known   to  us,4  —  some    twenty  deities    were    worshipped. 
Images    at    least    of   these    deities    must   have    stood    in    the 
temple  ; 5  but,  since  there  is  a  distinct  reference  to  zikkurats fi  in 
the  list,  for  some  of  them  special  sanctuaries  of  some  kind 
must  have  been  erected  within  the  precinct.     From  the  same 
list  we  learn  that  there  was  a  temple  to  Marduk7  in  Ashur  in 
which  the  cult  of  the^Shamash,  Sarpanitum,  Ramman,  Ninib, 
Anunit  was  also  carried  on  ;  similarly,  in  the  temples  of  Ashur, 
of   Gula,  and  of    Ninib,   other  gods  were  worshipped.      Pro- 
visions of  some  kind  for  the  cult  of  these  deities  must  have 

1  See  Tiele,  Zeitschrift  fiir  Assyriologie,  ii.  100. 

2  III  Rawlinson,  pi.  66.    The  list  also  contains  objects  in  the  temples  used  for  the 
cult. 

3  IIIR.  66.  obverse,  col.  ii.  11.  2-25.  4  See  p.  207. 

s  The  sign  for  image  occurs  in  connection  with  some  of  the  gods. 
G  The  term  can  hardly  be  used  here  in  the  strict  sense  of  '  towers,'  but  appears 
to  have  become  a  general  word  for  a  sacred  structure. 
1  lb.  col.  iii.  11.  22-34. 


638  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

been  made,  and  one  cannot  escape  the  conclusion  that  in  the 
Assyrian  capitals,  the  sacred  precincts  likewise  covered  consid- 
erable territory,  and  that  the  tendency  existed  towards  a  steady 
increase  of  the  structures  erected  in  connection  with  the  cult 
•  if  the  patron  deity.  Sennacherib  proudly  describes  Nineveh 
as  the  city  which  contained  the  shrines  of  all  gods  and  god- 
desses.1 

The  Names  of  the  Zikkurats  and  Temples. 

We  have  seen  that  every  sacred  edifice  had  a  special  name 
by  which  it  was  known.  This  custom  belongs  to  the  oldest 
period  of  Babylonian  history,  and  continues  to  the  latest. 
Through  these  names,  to  which,  no  doubt,  considerable  signifi- 
cance was  attached,  we  obtain  a  valuable  insight  into  the  reli- 
gious spirit  of  the  Babylonians  ;  but  it  is  important  to  note 
that  the  custom  does  not  appear  to  have  been  as  general 2  in 
Assyria,  where  the  temples  are  simply  known  as  the  house  of 
this  or  that  god  or  goddess.  Of  special  interest  are  those 
names  which  were  suggested  by  the  original  design  of  the 
temples.  Such  are  E-Kur,  'the  mountain  house'  at  Nippur, 
E-kharsagkurkura,  'the  house  of  the  mountain  of  all  lands,'  the 
name  of  several  temples.3  The  same  idea  finds  expression  also 
in  such  names  as  E-kharsag-ella,  or  '  house  of  the  glorious  moun- 
tain,' the  name  of  a  temple  to  Gula  in  Babylon;  E-kharsag,  'the 
mountain  house,'  a  temple  in  Ur;4  E-kur-makh,  '  the  house  of 
the  great  mountain,'  which  a  text 5  declares  to  be  equivalent  to 
E-kharsag-kalama.  Closely  allied  with  these  names  are  those 
indicating  in  one  way  or  the  other,  the  height  or  greatness  of 

1  Meissner-Rost,  Bauin  Sanherib's,  p.  7. 

ill.-  list  II  IK.  66.     An  exception  is  formed  by  the  temple  to  Ramman 
in  the  city  of  Asshur,  which  lias  a  special  name.     See  the  following  note. 
:i  Including  the  one  to  Ramman  in  Asshur. 
4  IR.  2.  nos.  11,  2. 
"  UK.  5  1,  obverse  13. 


THE    TEMPLES   AND    THE    CULT.  639 

the  buildings,  as  the  general  aim  of  the  builders.  Prominent 
among  such  names  are  E-Sagila,  ' the  lofty  house,'  the  famous 
temple  and  temple  area  at  Babylon ;  E-makh,  '  the  great 
house,'  a  chapel  to  Nin-kharsag,  situated  perhaps  within 
E-Sagila;  E-gal-makh,  '  the  great  palace,'  an  old  temple  in  Ur  ; 
E-anna,  '  the  heavenly  house,'  that  is,  the  house  reaching  up  to 
heaven,  which  is  the  name  of  the  temple  of  Ishtar  or  Nana  at 
Erech  ;  E-Igi-e-nir-kidur-makh,1 '  the  tower  of  the  great  dwelling  ' 
sacred  to  Ninni  at  Kish.  To  the  same  class  belong  such  desig- 
nations as  E-dur-an-ki,  '  the  link  of  heaven  and  earth,' 2  the 
name  of  a  zikkurat  at  Larsa  ;  E-an-dadia,  '  the  house  reach- 
ing to  heaven,'  the  zikkurat  at  Agade ;  E-pa,  '  the  summit 
house,'  the  zikkurat  to  Nin-girsu  at  Lagash ;  E-gubba-an-ki, 
'the  point  of  heaven  and  earth,'  one  of  the  names  of  the  zik- 
kurat in  Dilbat ;  E-dim-anna,  '  the  house  of  heavenly  construc- 
tion,' the  chapel  to  Sin  within  the  precinct  of  E-Zida  at  Borsippa, 
—  a  name  that  again  conveys  the  notion  of  an  edifice  reaching 
up  to  heaven.  The  names  of  the  zikkurats  at  Erech  and  Bor- 
sippa, '  the  house  of  seven  zones  '  and  '  the  house  of  the  seven 
divisions  of  heaven  and  earth,'  respectively,  while  conveying,  as 
we  saw,3  cosmological  conceptions  of  a  more  specific  character, 
may  still  be  reckoned  in  the  class  of  names  that  embody  the 
leading  purpose  of  the  tower  in  Babylonia,  as  may  also  a  name 
like  E-temen-an-ki,  'the  foundation  stone  of  heaven  and  earth,' 
assigned  to  the  zikkurat  to  Marduk  in  Babylonia.  <•— 

The  sacred  edifice,  as  the  dwelling  of  the  god  to  whom  it  is 
dedicated,  leads  to  such  names  as  E-Zida,  '  the  true  house  or 
fixed  house,' 4  the  famous  temple  to  Nabu  in  Borsippa  ;  E-dur- 
gina,5'the  house  of  the  established  seat,'  a  temple  of  Bel-sarbi 6 

1  Ige-e-nir  =  zikkurat ;  Kidur  =  shubtu  (dwelling)  ;  Makh  =  rabu  (great). 

2  The  name  approaches  closely  to  the  conception  of  a  zikkurat  in  the  Book  of  J 
Genesis,  as  a  '  ladder  '  connecting  heaven  and  earth.     Gen.  xxviii.  12. 

3  See  above,  p.  619. 

4  The  ideas « true,  fixed,  established,  eternal'  are  all  expressed  by  the  element  Ztda. 

5  I  adopt  this  reading  as  the  one  generally  used.  6  See  above,  p.  242. 


640  BAB  )  L  ( K \  /AN- ASS  YAVAN  RELIGION. 

in  Baz  ;  E-ki-dur'-garza,  '  the  sacred  dwelling,'  a  temple  to  Nin- 
lil-anna  in  Babylon  ;  E-kua,  'the  dwelling-house,'  the  name  of 
the  papakhu  of  Marduk  in  E-Sagila;  E-gi-umunna,  'the  perma- 
nent dwelling';  E-esh'2-gi,  a  shrine  to  Nin-girsu  at  Lagash  with 
the  same  meaning,  '  permanent  house.' 

Another  class  is  formed  by  such  names  as  are  suggested  by 
the  attributes  of  the  deity  to  whom  the  edifices  are  dedicated. 
Such  are  E-babbara,  '  the  brilliant  house,'  which,  as  the  name 
of  the  temples  to  Shamash  at  Sippar  and  Larsa,  recalls  at  once 
the  character  of  the  sun-god.  Similarly,  E-gish-shir-gal,  '  the 
house  of  the  great  luminary,'  was  an  appropriate  name  for  the 
temple  to  the  moon-god  at  Ur.  The  staff  or  sceptre  being 
the  symbol  of  the  god  Nabu,  suggests  as  the  name  of  a  sanc- 
tuary to  him  in  Babylonia,  the  name  E-pad-kalama-suma,  '  the 
house  of  him  who  gives  the  sceptre  of  the  world,'  while  the 
character  of  Shamash  as  the  god  of  justice  finds  an  expression 
in  the  name  E-ditar-kalama,  '  the  house  of  the  universal  judge,' 
given  to  his  temple  or  chapel  in  Babylon.  The  association  of 
the  number  fifty  with  Ningirsu-Ninib  leads  to  the  name  E-ninnu, 
'  house  of  fifty,' 3  for  his  temple  in  Lagash.  Again,  the  position 
of  Ann  in  the  pantheon  accounts  for  the  name  E-adda,  'house 
of  the  father,'  given  to  his  temple,  just  as  E-nin-makh,  '  the 
house  of  the  great  lady,'  the  name  of  a  chapel  in  Babylon,  at 
once  recalls  a  goddess  like  Ishtar.  Other  names  that  describe 
a  temple  by  epithets  of  the  gods  to  whom  they  are  sacred,  are 
E-nun-makh,  'the  house  of  the  great  lord,'  descriptive  of  Sin; 
K  me-te-ur-sagga, '  the  house  of  the  glory  of  the  warrior,'  a  tem- 
ple sacred  to  Zamama-Ninib ;  E-U-gal,  'the  house  of  the  great 
lord,'  a  temple  to  En-lil.  A  name  like  E-edinna,  'house  of  the 
field,'  a  temple  to  the  consort  of  Shamash  at  Sippar,  may  also 
have  been  suggested  by  some  attribute  of  the  goddess.4 

1  Or  tush.     Cf.  Briinnow,  Sign  List,  no.  10523. 

2  ( »r  ab.     ^-r  Jensen,  Keih  Bibl.  3,  1,  pp.  15,  173.  :  See  above,  p.  •;;. 

'  Compare  tin-  name  '  Belit-seri,'  '  mistress  of  the  fields,'  as  the  name  of  a  goddess 
who  belongs  to  the  pantheon  of  the  lower  world.     See  p.  5SS. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CELT.  641 

Lastly,  we  have  a  class  of  names  that  might  be  described  as 
purely  ornamental,  or  as  embodying  a  pious  wish.  Of  such  we 
have  a  large  number.  Examples  of  this  class  are  E-tila,  '  house 
of  life.'  Names  extolling  the  glory  and  splendor  of  the  temples 
are  common.  In  a  list  of  temples  x  we  find  such  designations 
as  '  house  of  light,' '  house  of  the  brilliant  precinct,' '  great  place,' 
'  lofty  and  brilliant  wall,'2  'house  of  great  splendor,'  '  the  splen- 
dor of  heaven  and  earth,'  'house  without  a  rival,'  '  light  of 
Shamash.'  The  seat  of  Sarpanitum  in  E-Sagila,  is  known  as 
'the  gate  of  widespread  splendor';  E-salgisa,  'the  treasury,' 
as  the  name  of  a  temple  in  Girsu,  may  belong  here.  A  temple 
to  Gula  in  Sippar  was  called  E-ulla  ;  that  is,  '  the  beautiful 
house.'  The  old  temple  to  Sin  at  Harran  bore  the  significant 
name  E-khulkhul,  'house  of  joys,'  while  the  pious  wish  of  the 
worshipper  is  again  expressed  in  the  name  '  threshold  of  long 
life,'  given  to  the  zikkurat  in  Sippar.3  Among  a  series  of  names,4 
illustrating  the  religious  sentiments  of  the  people  are  the  fol- 
lowing :  '  the  heart  of  Shamash,'  '  the  house  of  hearkening  to 
prayers,'5  'the  house  full  of  joy,'  'the  brilliant  house,'  'the  life 
of  the  world,' '  the  place  of  fates,'  and  the  like. 

These  various  classes  of  names  are  a  valuable  index  of  the 
varied  and  often  remarkable  conceptions  held  of  the  gods.  To 
call  a  temple,  for  example,  'court  of  the  world'"  may  have 
been  due  originally  to  a  haughty  presumption  on  the  part  of 
some  one  deeply  attached  to  some  god ;  but  such  a  name  must 
also  have  led  to  regarding  the  god  as  not  limited  in  his  affec- 
tions to  a  particular  district.  Whatever  tendencies  existed  in 
Babylonia  and  Assyria   towards  universalistic  conceptions   of 

1  IIR.  61,  nos.  i,  2,  6. 

2  Text,  Kar,  i.e.,  '  dam,"  '  wall,'  or  '  quay.' 

3  IIR.  50,  1.  S. 

4  Hezold  Catalogue,  etc.,  p.  1776. 

5  One  is  reminded  of  Isaiah's  sentiment  (lvi.  7)  regarding  the  temple  of  Yahwe, 
which  is  to  be  called  '  a  house  of  prayer  for  the  world.' 

6  Lit., '  enclosure.' 


BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

the  divine  beings  were  brought  out  in  the  temple  names,  and  in 
pari  may  have  been  advanced  by  these  names.  The  custom 
still  surviving  in  the  Jewish  Church  of  giving  names  to  syna- 
gogues may  be  traced  back  to  a  Babylonian  prototype.1 

The  History  of  the  Temples. 

The  history  of  the  temples  takes  us  back  to  the  earliest 
period  of  Babylonian  history,  and  the  temples  of  Assyria  like- 
wise date  from  the  small  beginnings  of  the  Assyrian  power. 
The  oldest  inscriptions  of  Mesopotamian  rulers  commemorate 
their  services  as  builders  of  temples.  Naram-Sin  and  Sargon 
glory  in  the  title  '  builder  of  the  temple  of  En-lil  in  Nippur.' 
Of  the  rulers  of  the  first  period  of  Babylonian  history,  it  so 
happens  that  we  know  more  of  Gudea  than  of  any  other.  We 
may  feel  certain  that  he  but  follows  the  example  of  his  prede- 
cessors, in  devoting  so  large  a  share  of  his  energies  to  temple 
building.  Hammurabi  is  an  active  builder  of  sanctuaries,  and 
so  on,  through  the  period  of  Assyrian  supremacy  down  to  the 
closing  days  of  the  Babylonian  monarchy,  the  thoughts  of  the 
rulers  were  directed  towards  honoring  the  gods  by  improving, 
restoring,  rebuilding,  or  enlarging  the  sanctuaries,  as  well  as  by 
endowing  them  with  rich  gifts  and  votive  offerings.  The  Assyrian 
kings,  though  perhaps  more  concerned  with  embellishing  their 
palaces,  do  not  neglect  the  seats  of  the  gods.  Anxious  to 
maintain  the  connection  between  their  kingdom  and  the  old 
i  ities  ol  the  south,  the  Assyrian  monarchs  were  fond  of  paying 
homage  to  the  time-honored  sanctuaries  of  Babylonia.  This 
feeling,  which  is  of  course  shared  by  the  Babylonian  rulers, 
results  in  bringing  about  the  continuity  of  the  Babylonian  and 

;ogue  is  called  a  '  house  '  just  as  the  Babylonian  temple  is,  and  among 
[Ogues  (01  oi   congregations)  in  modern  times  that  form  close  parallels 

1,1,11  ol    Babylonian   temple-,   may  be  instanced  ' house  of  prayer,' '  glory  of 

tree  of  life.'     The  custom  of  naming  Christian  churches  after  the  apostles 

represents  a  further  development  along  the  order  of  ideas  current  in  Babylonia. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  643 

Assyrian  religion.  If,  despite  the  changes  that  the  religious 
doctrines  underwent,  despite  the  new  interpretations  given  to 
old  myths  and  legends,  despite  the  profound  changes  introduced 
into  the  relationship  of  the  gods  to  one  another  through  the 
systematization  of  the  pantheon,  if,  despite  all  this,  the  Babylo- 
nians and  Assyrians  —  leaders  and  people  —  continued  to  feel 
that  they  were  following  the  religion  of  their  forefathers,  it  was 
due  to  the  maintenance  of  the  old  sanctuaries.  We  can  actu- 
ally trace  the  history  of  some  of  these  sanctuaries  for  a  period 
of  over  3000  years.  In  their  restorations,  the  later  builders 
were  careful  not  to  offend  the  memory  of  their  predecessors. 
They  sought  out  the  old  dedicatory  inscriptions,  and  took  steps 
to  preserve  them.  They  rejoiced  when  they  came  upon  the  old 
foundation  stones.  In  their  restorations  they  were  careful  to 
follow  original  designs ;  and  likewise  in  the  cult,  so  far  from 
deviating  from  established  custom,  they  strongly  emphasized 
their  desire  to  restore  the  cult  to  its  original  character,  wherever 
an  interruption  for  one  reason  or  the  other  had  taken  place. 
In  all  this,  the  rulers  were  acting  in  accord  with  the  popular 
instincts,  for  the  masses  clung  tenaciously  to  the  old  sanc- 
tuaries, as  affording  an  unfailing  means  of  protection  against 
the  ills  and  accidents  of  life. 

To  enumerate  all  the  temples  of  Babylonia  and  Assyria 
would  be  both  an  impossible  and  a  useless  task.  Besides 
those  mentioned  in  the  historical  texts  and  in  the  legal  litera- 
ture, we  have  long  lists  of  temples  prepared  by  the  pedagogues. 
Some  of  these  lists  have  been  published  ; '  others  are  to  be 
found  among  the  unpublished  material  in  the  British  Museum 
collections.2  It  is  doubtful  whether  even  these  catalogues  were 
exhaustive,  or  aimed  at  being  so  ;  moreover,  a  large  number  of 
gods  are  known  to  us  only  from  the  lists  of  the  pedagogues 

1  E.g.,  IIR.  50  (zikkurats)  ;  IIR.  61  ;  IIIR.  66. 

2  See  Bezold  Catalogue,  etc.,  p.  1776  and  elsewhere. 
s  E.g.,  UK.  54-60;  IIIR.  67-69;  VR.  43,  46. 


,  8 


644  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

So,  to  mention  some,  taken  from  a  valuable  list1  which  gives 
i  briefly  the  names  of  foreign  gods,  together  with  the  places  where 
liny  were  worshipped,  we  learn  of  such  gods  as  Lagamal,  Mag- 
arida,  Lasimu,  A-ishtu,  Bulala,  Katnu,  Kannu,  Kishshat,  Kani- 
shurra,  Khiraitum.  Knowing,  as  we  do,  that  at  various  periods 
ign  deities  were  introduced  into  Babylonia  and  Assyria,-  it 
was  necessary  to  make  some  provision  for  their  cult ;  and,  while 
no  doubt  most  of  these  minor  deities  and  foreign  gods  were 
represented  only  by  statues  placed  in  some  temple  or  temple 
precinct,  it  is  equally  certain  that  some  had  a  shrine  or  sanc- 
tuary of  some  kind  specially  erected  in  their  honor.  Tn 
hymns,  too,  deities  are  mentioned  that  are  otherwise  unknown. 
So  in  a  litany,  published  by  Craig,3  a  long  series  of  gods  is 
introduced.  Some  are  identical  with  those  included  in  the  list 
just  referred  to,4  others  appear  here  for  the  first  time,  as  Mishiru, 
lvilili  Ishi-milku.  Epithets  also  occur  in  lists  and  hymns, 
that  appear  to  belong  to  deities  otherwise  unknown.  We  are 
safe,  therefore,  in  estimating  the  number  of  temples,  zikkurats, 
and  smaller  shrines  in  babylonia  and  Assyria  to  have  reached 
high  into  the  hundreds.  Sanctuaries  must  have  covered  the 
Euphrates  Valley  like  a  network.  By  virtue  of  the  older  cul- 
ture of  the  south  and  the  greater  importance  that  Babylonia 
always  enjoyed  from  a  religious  point  of  view,  the  sanctuaries 
of  the  south  were  much  more  numerous  than  those  of  the 
north.  For  our  purposes,  it  is  sufficient  to  indicate  some  of 
the  most  important  of  the  temples  of  the  south  and  north. 
The  oldest  known  to  us  at  present  is  the  frequently  mentioned 
temple  of  E-Kur  at  Nippur,  sacred  to  En-lil  or  the  older  Bel. 
Its  history  can  be  carried  back  to  a  period  beyond  4000  B.C. ; 
howfar  beyond  cannot  be  determined  until  the  early  chronology 

1  Ilk.  6o,  no.  1.  obverse. 

]>.  [72.     Some  of  the  sods  invoked  by   Sennacherib  (see  p.  23S),  as  Gaga, 
Sherua,  and  perhaps  also  Khani,  are  foreign  deities. 

1   1  Babylonian  Religious  Texts,  1.  56-59. 
1  As  Lagamal,  Kanishui  1  a. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT  645 

is  better  known  than  at  present.  We  know,  however,  that  from 
the  time  of  Sargon  x  and  probably  even  much  earlier,  the  rulers 
who  had  control  of  Nippur  devoted  themselves  to  the  embel- 
lishment of  the  temple  area.  Climatic  conditions  necessitated 
frequent  repairs.  The  temple  also  suffered  occasionally  through 
political  tumults,  but  with  each  century  the  religious  importance 
of  E-Kur  was  increased.  Ur-Bau,  we  have  seen,  about  2700  B.C., 
erected  a  zikkurat  in  the  temple  area.  Some  centuries  later 
we  find  Bur-Sin  repairing  the  zikkurat  and  adding  a  shrine  near 
the  main  structure.  As  the  political  fortunes  of  Nippur  varied, 
so  E-Kur  had  its  ups  and  downs.  Under  the  Cassitic  rule,  an 
attempt  was  made  to  recover  for  Nippur  the  position  which  it 
formerly  occupied,  but  which  had  now  passed  over  to  Babylon. 
It  was  of  little  avail.  Bel  had  to  yield  to  Marduk,  and  yet, 
despite  the  means  that  the  priests  of  Marduk  took  to  transfer 
Bel's  prerogatives  to  the  new  head  of  the  pantheon,  the  rulers 
would  not  risk  the  anger  of  Bel  by  a  neglect  of  E-Kur.  Kuri- 
galzu,  a  king  of  the  Cassite  dynasty  (c.  1400  e.g.)  brings  back 
from  Elam2  a  votive  object  which,  originally  deposited  by  Dungi 
in  the  Ishtar  temple  at  Erech,  was  carried  to  Susa  by  an  Ela- 
mitic  conqueror  about  900  years  before  Kurigalzu.  The  latter 
deposits  this  object  not  in  Marduk's  temple  at  Babylon,  but  in 
Bel's  sanctuary  at  Nippur.  During  the  entire  Cassitic  period, 
the  kings  continued  to  build  or  make  repairs  in  the  temple  pre- 
cinct, and  almost  every  ruler  is  represented  by  more  or  less 
costly  votive  offerings  made  to  Bel's  sanctuary.  In  this  way, 
we  can  follow  the  history  of  the  temple  down  to  the  Assyrian 
period.  In  the  twelfth  century  the  religious  supremacy  of 
E-Kur  yields  permanently  to  E-Sagila.  The  temple  is  sacked, 
part  of  it  is  destroyed,  and  it  was  left  to  rulers  of  the  north 
like  Esarhaddon  and  Ashurbanabal  to  once  more  restore  E-Kur 

1  See  Peters'  Nifpur,  ii.  chapter  x,  "  The  History  of  Nippur." 

2  lb.  ii.  260.     (rublished  in  Hilprecht's  Old  Babylonian  Ins,  ri/tions,  i.  1.  pi.  21, 
no.  43.     See  also  pi.  8,  no.  15.) 


646  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

and  its  dependencies  to  its  former  proportions.  These  kings, 
especially  the  latter,  devote  much  time  and  energy  in  rebuild- 
in-  the  zikkurat  and  in  erecting  various  buildings  connected 
with  the  temple  administration.  Under  the  new  Babylonian 
dynasty,  however,  E-Kur  was  again  destroyed,  and  this  time 
by  the  ruthless  hands  of  southern  rulers.  Nebuchadnezzar,  so 
devoted  to  Marduk  and  Nabu,  appears  to  have  regarded  E-Kur 
as  a  serious  rival  to  E-Sagila  and  E-Zida.  Some  traces  of 
building  operations  at  E-Kur  appear  to  date  from  the  Persian 
period,  but,  practically,  the  history  of  E-Kur  comes  to  an  end 
at  the  close  of  the  seventh  century.  The  sanctity  of  the  place, 
however,  remained  ;  a  portion  of  the  old  city  becomes  a  favor- 
ite burial  site,  while  other  parts  continue  to  be  inhabited  till 
the  twelfth  century  of  our  era.  The  city  of  Bel  becomes  the 
seat  of  a  Christian  bishop,  and  Jewish  schools  take  »the  place 
once  occupied  by  the  "  star-gazers  of  Chaldea." 

The  history  of  E-Kur,  so  intimately  bound  up  with  political 
events,  may  be  taken  as  an  index  of  the  fortunes  that  befell 
tiie  other  prominent  sanctuaries  of  Babylonia. 

The  foundation  of  the  Shamash  temple  at  Sippar,  and  known 
as  E-Babbara,  'the  brilliant  house,'  can  likewise  be  traced  as 
far  back  as  the  days  of  Naram-Sin.  At  that  time  there  was 
already  a  sanctuary  to  Anunit  within  the  precincts  of  E-Bab- 
bara. Members  of  the  Cassite  dynasty  devote  themselves  to 
the  restoration  of  this  sanctuary.  Through  a  subsequent  inva- 
sion of  the  nomads,  the  cult  was  interrupted  and  the  great 
statue  of  Shamash  destroyed.  Several  attempts  are  made  to 
reorganize  the  cult,  but  it  was  left  for  Nabubaliddin  in  the 
tenth  century  to  restore  E-Babbara  to  its  former  prestige, 
rhaddon  and  Ashurbanabal,  who  pay  homage  to  the  old 
Bel  at  Nippur,  also  devote  themselves  to  Shamash  at  Sippar. 
They  restore  such  portions  of  it  as  had  suffered  from  the  lapse 
of  time  and  from  other  causes.  Nebuchadnezzar  is  obliged  to 
rebuild  parts  of    E-Babbara,   and  the  last  king  of   babylonia, 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  647 

Nabonnedos,  is  so  active  in  his  building  operations  at  Sippar 
that  he  arouses  the  anger  of  the  priests  of  Babylon,  who  feel 
that  their  ruler  is  neglecting  the  sanctuaries  of  Marduk  and 
Nabu.  It  is  through  Nabonnedos  1  and  Nabubaliddin,2  chiefly, 
that  we  learn  many  of  the  details  of  the  history  of  E-Babbara 
during  this  long  period. 

Of  the  other  important  temples  that  date  from  the  early 
period  of  Babylonian  history,  we  must  content  ourselves  with 
brief  indications. 

The  temple  to  Shamash  at  Larsa,  while  not  quite  as  old  as 
that  of  Sippar,  was  quite  as  famous.  Its  name  was  likewise 
E-Babbara.  It  is  first  mentioned  in  the  inscriptions  of  Ur-Bau 
(V.  2700  B.C.),  and  it  continues  to  enjoy  the  favor  of  the  rulers 
till  the  Persian  conquest.3 

The  two  chief  places  for  the  moon-cult  were  Ur  and 
Harran.  The  name  of  Sin's  temple4  at  the  former  place  was 
E-Gish-shir-gal,  '  the  house  of  the  great  light ' ;  at  the  latter, 
E-khulklul,  '  the  house  of  joys.'  Around  both  sanctuaries, 
but  particularly  around  the  former,  cluster  sacred  traditions. 
We  have  seen  that  the  moon-cult  at  an  early  period  enjoyed 
greater  importance  than  sun-worship.  The  temples  of  Sin 
were  centers  of  intellectual  activity.  It  is  in  these  places  that 
we  may  expect  some  day  to  find  elaborate  astronomical  and 
astrological  records.  Harran,  indeed,  does  not  appear  at  any 
time  to  have  played  any  political  role  5  (though  it  was  overrun 
occasionally  by  nomads),  so  that  the  significance  of  the  place 
is  due  almost  entirely  to  the  presence  of  the  great  temple  at 

1  VR.  63.  2  VR.  pis.  60,  61. 

s  So,  e.g.,  as  late  as  the  days  of  Nebopolassar  (Scheil,  Recueildes  Travaux,  xviii. 

16). 

4  Besides  this  temple,  there  were  two  others,  perhaps  only  chapels,  dedicated  to  Sin 
at  Ur :  (a)  E-te-im-ila  (mentioned  first  by  Ur-Bau,  IR.  pi.  i,  no  4),  and  (/>  E-Kharsag 
(mentioned  first  by  Dungi,  IR.  2,  11.  no.  2).  The  zikkurat  at  Ur  had,  of  course,  a 
special  name  (IIR.  so,  obverse  iS). 

5  See  Noldeke,  Zeitschrift  fur  Assyriologie,  xi.  107-109.  Hilprecht's  theory  (Old 
Babylonian  Inscriptions,  i.  2,  55)  has  not  been  accepted  by  scholars. 


648  r,AHYLONIAN-ASSYKIAN  RELIGION. 

the  place.  It  is  Nabonnedos,1  again,  who  endeavors  to  restore 
the  ancient  prestige  of  the  sanctuary  at  Harran.  E-anna, 
'  the  lofty  house,'  was  the  name  of  Ishtar's  famous  temple 
.it  Erech.  The  mention  of  this  temple  in  one  of  the  creation 
narratives  2  and  the  part  played  by  Ishtar  of  Erech  in  the  Gil- 
gamesh  epic  are  sufficient  indications  of  the  significance  of 
this  structure.  Historical  inscriptions  from  the  earliest  period 
to  the  days  of  Ashurbanabal  and  Nebuchadnezzar  come  to  our 
further  aid  in  illustrating  the  continued  popularity  of  the  Ishtar 
cult  in  E-anna.  The  Ishtar  who  survives  in  Babylonia  and 
Assyria  is  practically  the  Ishtar  of  Erech,  —  that  is,  Nana." 

Passing  by  such  sanctuaries  as  E-shid-lam,  sacred  to  Nergal 
at  Cuthah,  and  coming  to  E-Sagila  and  E-Zida,  the  two  great 
temples  of  Babylon  and  Borsippa,  respectively,  it  is  of  course 
evident  from  the  close  connection  between  political  develop- 
ment and  religious  supremacy,  that  Marduk's  seat  of  worship 
occupies  a  unique  position  from  the  days  of  Hammurabi  to 
the  downfall  of  Babylonia.  While  the  history  of  E-Sagila  and 
E-Zida  cannot  be  traced  back  further  than  the  reign  of  Ham- 
murabi, the  temples  themselves  are  considerably  older.  Pre- 
vious to  the  rise  of  the  city  of  Babylon  as  the  political  center, 
the  Nabu  cult  in  E-Zida  must  have  been  more  prominent  than 
tlir  worship  of  Marduk  in  E-Sagila.  Marduk  was  merely  one 
solar  deity  among  several,  and  a  minor  one  at  that,  whereas 
the  attributes  of  wisdom  given  to  Nabu  point  to  the  intellec- 
tual importance  that  Borsippa  had  acquired.  The  Nabu  cult 
was  combined  with  the  worship  of  Marduk  simply  because  it 
could  not  be  suppressed.  At  various  times,  as  we  have  seen,4 
Nabu  formed  a  serious  rival  to  Marduk,  and  it  will  be  recalled 
that  up  to  a  late  period  we  find  Nabu  given  the  preference  to 
Marduk  in  official  documents.5     The  inseparable  association  of 

1  VR.  64,  col.  i.  3-9  ;  col.  ii.  46. 

2  See  p.  444.  -'  See  pp.  126  seq. 
:!  See  p.  81.                                 G  See  p.  129. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  649 

E-Sagila  and  E-Zida  is  a  tribute  to  Nabu  which,  we  may  feel 
certain,  the  priests  of  Marduk  did  not  offer  willingly.  But  this 
association  becomes  the  leading  feature  in  the  history  of  the 
two  temples.  To  pay  homage  to  Marduk  and  Nabu  meant 
something  quite  different  from  making  a  pilgrimage  to  the  seat 
of  Bel  or  presenting  a  gift  to  the  Shamash  sanctuary  at  Sippar. 
It  was  an  acknowledgment  of  Babylonia's  prestige.  The 
Assyrian  rulers  regarded  it  as  both  a  privilege  and  a  solemn 
duty  to  come  to  Babylon  and  invoke  the  protection  of  Marduk 
and  Nabu.  In  E-Sagila  the  installation  of  the  rulers  over  Baby- 
lonia took  place,  and  a  visit  to  Marduk's  temple  was  incom- 
plete without  a  pilgrimage  across  the  river  to  E-Zida.  The 
influence  exerted  by  these  two  temples  upon  the  whole  course 
of  Babylonian  history  from  the  third  millennium  on,  can  hardly 
be  overestimated.  From  the  schools  grouped  around  E-Sagila 
and  E-Zida,  went  forth  the  decrees  that  shaped  the  doctrinal 
development  of  the  religion  of  Babylonia  and  Assyria.  In 
these  schools,  the  ancient  wisdom  was  molded  into  the  shape  in 
which  we  find  it  in  the  literary  remains  of  the  Euphrates  Valley. 
Here  the  past  was  interpreted  and  the  intellectual  future  of  the 
country  projected.  The  thought  of  E-Sagila  and  E-Zida  must 
have  stored  up  emotions  in  the  breast  of  a  Babylonian  and 
Assyrian,  that  can  only  be  compared  to  a  pious  Mohammedan's 
enthusiasm  for  Mecca,  or  the  longing  of  an  ardent  Hebrew  for 
Jerusalem.  The  hymns  to  Marduk  and  Nabu  voice  this  emo- 
tion. There  is  a  fervency  in  the  prayers  of  Nebuchadnezzar 
which  marks  them  off  from  the  somewhat  perfunctory  invoca- 
tions of  the  Assyrian  kings  to  Ashur  and  Ishtar.  An  appreci- 
ation of  the  position  of  E-Sagila  and  E-Zida  in  Babylonian 
history  is  an  essential  condition  to  an  understanding  of  the 
Babylonian-Assyrian  religion.  The  priests  of  Marduk  could 
view  with  equanimity  the  rise  and  growth  of  Assyria's  power. 
The  influence  of  E-Sagila  and  E-Zida  was  not  affected  by  such 
a  shifting  of  the  political  kaleidoscope.     Babylon  remained  the 


r>50  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

religious  center  of  the  country.  When  one  day,  a  Persian  con- 
queror —  Cyrus  —  entered  the  precincts  of  E-Sagila,  his  first  step 
was  to  acknowledge  Marduk  and  Nabu  as  the  supreme  powers 
in  the  world  ;  and  the  successors  of  Alexander  continue  to  glory 
in  the  title  '  adorner  of  E-Sagila  and  E-Zida.'  '  With  the  same 
zeal  that  distinguishes  a  good  Babylonian,  Antiochus  Soter 
hastens  to  connect  his  reign  with  the  two  temples  by  busying 
himself  with  their  enlargement  and  beautification.  There  was 
no  better  way  in  which  he  could  indicate,  at  the  same  time,  his 
political  control  over  the  country. 

One  more  factor  contributing  to  the  general  influence  of  the 
Babylonian  temples  remains  to  be  noted.  In  the  course  of 
time,  all  the  great  temples  in  the  large  centers  became  large 
financial  establishments.  The  sources  whence  the  temples 
derived  their  wealth  were  various.  The  kings  both  of  Babylo- 
nia and  Assyria  took  frequent  occasions  to  endow  the  sanctu- 
aries with  lands  or  other  gifts.  At  times,  the  endowment  took 
the  form  of  certain  quantities  of  wine,  corn,  oil,  fruits,  and  the 
like,  for  which  annual  provision  is  made;  at  times,  the  harvest 
derived  from  a  piece  of  property  is  set  aside  for  the  benefit  of 
the  temple.  In  other  ways,  too,  the  temples  acquired  large 
holdings,  through  purchases  of  land  made  from  the  income 
accruing  to  it,  and  from  the  tithes  which  it  became  customary 
to  collect.  This  property  was  either  farmed  through  the  author- 
ities of  the  temple  for  the  direct  benefit  of  the  sanctuary,  or 
was  rented  out  to  private  parties  under  favorable  conditions. 
We  learn  of  large  bodies  of  laborers  indentured  to  temples,  as 
well  as  of  slaves  owned  or  controlled  by  the  temples.  These 
workmen  were  engaged  for  various  purposes,  —  for  building 
operations,  for  service  in  the  fields,  for  working  raw  material, 
such  as  wool,  into  finished  products,  and  much  more  the  like. 
15ut,  more  than  this,  the  temples  engaged  directly  in  commercial 
affairs,  lending  sums  of  money  and  receiving  interest.  In  some 
1  So  Antiochus  Soter,  \  R.  66,  col.  i.  1.  3. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  651 

sanctuaries,  a  thriving  business  of  barter  and  exchange  was 
carried  on.  Crops  are  sold,  houses  are  rented  by  the  temple 
agents,  and  there  was  scarcely  an  avenue  of  commerce  into 
which  the  temples  did  not  enter.  An  active  business  was  also 
carried  on  in  the  manufacture  and  sale  of  idols,  votive  offerings, 
amulets,  and  the  like.  A  very  large  number  of  the  legal  docu- 
ments found  in  the  Babylonian  mounds  deal  with  the  business 
affairs  of  the  temples.1  Such  a  state  of  affairs  naturally  con- 
tributed towards  making  the  temples  important  establishments 
and  towards  increasing  the  influence  of  the  priests  over  the 
people. 

The  temples  of  Assyria  play  a  minor  part  in  the  religious 
life  of  rulers  and  people.  True,  grand  structures  were  reared  in 
Ashur,  Calah,  Nineveh,  and  Arbela,  and  no  important  step  was 
taken  by  the  kings  without  consulting  Ashur,  Ishtar,  or  Ram- 
man  through  the  mediation  of  the  priests.  The  great  cities  of 
Assyria  also  become  intellectual  centers.  The  priests  of  Arbela 
created  a  school  of  theological  thought,  but  all  these  efforts 
were  but  weak  imitations  of  the  example  furnished  by  the  tem- 
ples of  the  south.  Even  Ashurbanabal,  whose  ambition  was  to 
make  Nineveh  the  center  of  religious  and  intellectual  progress, 
failed  of  his  purpose.  His  empire  soon  fell  to  decay,  and 
with  that  decay  Nineveh  disappears  from  the  stage  of  history. 
Babylon  and  Borsippa,  however,  remain,  and  continue  to  hand 
down  to  succeeding  generations,  the  wisdom  of  the  past. 

The  Sacred  Objects  in  the  Temples,  —  Altars,  Vases, 
Images,  Basins,  Ships. 

The  earliest  altars  were  made  of  the  same  material  as  the 
zikkurats    and     sanctuaries.       One    found    at    Nippur    at    an 

1  For  a  further  account  of  the  financial  side  of  the  temple  establishments,  see 
Peiser's  excellent  remarks  in  his  Babylonische  Vertrage  des  Berliner  Museums, 
pp.  xvii-xxix. 


652  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

exceedingly  low  level  was  of  sun-dried  bricks.1  How  early 
this  material  was  replaced  by  stone,  we  are  not  in  a  position  to 
say.  Gudea,  who  imports  diorite  from  the  Sinai  Peninsula  to 
make  statues2  of  himself,  presumably  uses  a  similar  material 
for  the  sacred  furnishings  of  his  temples,  though  custom  and 
conventionality  may  have  maintained  the  use  of  the  older  clay 
material  for  some  time.  In  Assyria,  altars  of  limestone  and 
alabaster  became  the  prevailing  types.  The  shape  and  size  of 
the  altars  varied  considerably.  The  oldest  known  to  us,  the  one 
found  at  Nippur,  was  about  twelve  feet  long  and  half  as  wide. 
The  upper  surface  was  surrounded  by  a  rim  of  bitumen."  As- 
syrian altars  now  in  the  British  museum  are  from  two  to  three 
feet  high.  The  ornamentation  of  the  corners  of  the  rim  of  the 
altar  led  to  giving  the  altar  the  appearance  of  horns.4  The 
base  of  the  altar  was  either  a  solid  piece  with  a  circular  or 
oblong  plate  resting  on  it,  or  the  table  rested  on  a  tripod.5 
The  latter  species  was  well  adapted  for  being  transported  from 
place  to  place  by  the  Assyrian  kings,  who  naturally  were 
anxious  to  maintain  the  worship  of  Ashur  and  of  other  gods 
while  on  their  military  expeditions.  Much  care  was  spent  upon 
the  ornamentation  of  the  altars,  and,  if  we  may  believe  Herod- 
otus, the  great  altars  at  Babylon  were  made  of  gold.0  In  front 
of  the  altars  stood  large  vases  or  jars  of  terra  cotta,  used  for 
ablutions  and  other  purposes  in  connection  with  the  sacrifices. 
Two  such  jars,  one  behind  the  other,  were  found  at  Nippur. 
They  were  ornamented  with  rope  patterns,  and  the  depth  at 
which   they  were  found  is  an   indication  of  the  antiquity  and 

1  1 1  ilprcclit,  Old  Babylonian  Inscriptions,  i.  2,  p.  24. 

2  Nino  magnificent  diorite  statues  "I  <  rudea  were  found  by  De  Sar7.ec  at  Telloh. 

hes — the  trace  of  sacrifices  —  were  also  found  on  the  altar. 
See  the  illustrations  in   Perrot  and  Chipiez,  History  of  Art  in  Chaldea,  etc., 
i.  143,  255.     Similar  horns  existed  on  the  Hebrew  and  Phoenician  altars. 

the  illustrations  in  Perrol  .mil  Chipiez, *'£.,  i.  194,256,  257.    On  seal  cylinders 
altar  titles  are  frequently  represented. 
8  Book  i.         [83. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  653 

stability  of  the  forms  of  worship  in  the  Babylonian  temples. 
It  may  be  proper  to  recall  that  in  the  Solomonic  temple,  like- 
wise, there  were  a  series  of  jars  that  stood  near  the  great  altar 
in  the  large  court.1 

A  piece  of  furniture  to  which  great  religious  importance  was 
attached  was  a  great  basin  known  as  '  apsu,'  —  the  name,  it 
will  be  recalled,  for  'the  deep.'  The  name  indicates  that  it 
was  a  symbolical  representation  of  the  domain  of  Ea.  In 
Gudea's  days  the  symbol  is  already  known,2  and  it  continues  in 
use  to  the  end  of  the  Babylonian  empire.  The  zikkurat  itself 
being,  as  we  saw,  an  attempt  to  reproduce  the  shape  of  the 
earth,  the  representation  of  the  '  apsu '  would  suggest  itself  as 
a  natural  accessory  to  the  temple.  The  zikkurat  and  the  basin 
together  would  thus  become  living  symbols  of  the  current  cos- 
mological  conceptions.  Gudea  already  regards  the  zikkurat  as 
a  symbol.  To  make  the  ascent  is  a  virtuous  deed.3  The 
thought  of  adding  a  symbol  of  the  apsu  belongs,  accordingly, 
to  the  period  when  this  view  of  the  zikkurat  was  generally 
recognized.  The  shape  of  the  '  sea '  was  oblong  or  round.  It 
was  cut  of  large  blocks  of  stone  and  was  elaborately  decorated. 
One  of  the  oldest4  has  a  frieze  of  female  figures  on  it,  holding 
in  their  outstretched  hands  flagons  from  which  they  pour  water. 
In  Marduk's  temple  we  learn  that  there  were  two  basins,  — 
a  larger  and  a  smaller  one.  The  comparison  with  the  great 
'  sea  '  that  stood  in  the  court  of  Solomon's  temple  naturally 
suggests  itself,  and  there  can  be  little  doubt  that  the  latter  is 
an  imitation  of  a  Babylonian  model. 

Another  sacred  object  in  the  construction  of  which  much 
care  was  taken  was  the  ship  in  which  the  deity  was  carried  in 

i  See  Schick,  Die  Stiftshiitte,  etc.,  pp.  119  seq. 

2  Keils  Bibl.  3,  1,  p.  13;  see  also  p.  89. 

3  Inscription  G,  col.  i.  11.  15-17-     see  p.  621. 

4  Described  in  De  Sarzec's  Decouvertes  en  Chaldee,  pp.  216,  21  7.  For  other  speci- 
mens, see  ib.  pp.  106,  171;  and  see  also  Hilprecht,  Old  Babylonian  fnscrip 

i.  2,  p.  39,  note. 


BAB  YLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  B/:/./G/OAr. 

solemn  procession.  It  is  again  in  the  inscriptions  of  Gudea 1 
that  we  come  across  the  first  mention  of  this  ship.  This  ruler 
tells  us  that  he  built  the  'beloved  ship'  for  Nin-girsu,  and 
gave  it  the  name  Kar-nuna-ta-uddua,  the  ship  of  'the  one  that 
rises  up  out  of  the  dam  of  the  deep.'  The  ship  of  Nabu  is  of 
considerable  size,  and  is  fitted  out  with  a  captain  and  crew, 
has  masts  and  compartments.2  The  ship  resembled  a  moon's 
crescent,  not  differing  much,  therefore,  from  the  ordinary  flat- 
bottomed  Babylonian  boat  with  upturned  edges.  Through  Neb- 
uchadnezzar 3  we  learn  that  these  ships  were  brilliantly  studded 
with  precious  stones,  their  compartments  handsomely  fitted  out, 
and  that  in  them  the  gods  were  carried  in  solemn  procession  on 
the  festivals  celebrated  in  their  honor.4  A  long  list5  of  such 
ships  shows  that  it  was  a  symbol  that  belonged  to  all  the  great 
gods.  The  ships  of  Nin-lil,  Ea,  Marduk,  Sin,  Shamash,  Nabu, 
Ninib,  Bau,  Nin-gal,  and  of  others  are  specially  mentioned.  A 
custom  of  this  kind  of  carrying  the  gods  in  ships  must  have  orig- 
inated, of  course,  among  a  maritime  people.  We  may  trace  it 
back,  therefore,  to  the  very  early  period  when  the  sacred  cities 
of  Babylonia  lay  on  the  Persian  Gulf.  The  use  of  the  ships  also 
suggests,  that  the  solemn  procession  of  the  gods  was  originally 
on  water  and  not  on  land,  and  it  is  likely  that  this  excursion 
of  the  gods  symbolized  some  homage  to  the  chief  water-deity, 
Ea.  However  this  may  be,  the  early  significance  became  lost, 
but  the  custom  survived  in  babylonia  of  carrying  the  gods 
about  in  this  way.  In  Assyria,  less  wedded  to  ancient  tradi- 
tion, we  find  statues  of  the  gods  seated  on  thrones  or  standing 
upright,  carried  directly  on  the  shoulders  of  men.6  In  Egypt 
sacred  ships  are  very  common,  and  it  is  interesting  to  note  as 

1  Inscription  I),  col.  iii,  1-12. 

-  Win<  kler's  note,  Keils  Bibl.  3,  2,  p.  16. 
;:  IK.  5 1:  col.  iii.  1.  10. 
*  I!'.  55,  col.  iv.  11.  , 
■'  IIR.  6r.  no.  2,  obverse. 
See  lv""1  ""1  Chipiez,  Hist   <-y  oj     trt  in  Chaldea  and  Assyria,  i.  75,  76. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  655 

a  survival  of  the  old  Babylonian  and  Egyptian  custom  that  an 
annual  gift  sent  by  the  khedive  of  Egypt  to  Mecca  consists  of 
a  tabernacle,  known  as  Mahmal,  that  presents  the  outlines  of  a 
ship.1  The  ark  of  the  Hebrews  appears,  similarly,  to  have  been 
originally  a  ship  of  some  kind. 

The  ships  of  the  Babylonian  gods  had  names  given  to  them, 
just  as  the  towers  and  sanctuaries  had  their  names.  The  name 
of  Nin-girsu's  ship  has  already  been  mentioned.  Marduk's 
ship  was  appropriately  known  as  Ma-ku-a,  '  the  ship  of  the 
dwelling.'  2  Similarly,  a  ship  of  the  god  Sin  was  called  '  ship 
of  light,'  reminding  one  of  the  name  of  the  great  temple  to  the 
moon-god  at  Ur,  '  the  house  of  the  great  luminary.'  The  ship  of 
Nin-gal,  the  consort  of  Sin,  was  called  '  the  lesser  light.'  Bau's 
ship  was  described  by  an  epithet  of  the  goddess  as  '  the  ship 
of  the  brilliant  offspring,'  the  reference  being  to  the  descent  of 
the  goddess  from  father  Anu.3  These  illustrations  will  suffice 
to  show  the  dependence  of  the  names  of  the  ships  upon  the 
names  of  the  temples,  with  this  important  difference,  however, 
that  the  names  of  the  ships  are  chosen  from  a  closer  associa- 
tion with  the  gods  to  whom  they  belong.  So  a  ship  of  En-lil 
was  known  simply  as  '  the  ship  of  Bel,'  and  the  ship  of  Nam,1 
the  river-god,  was  called  '  the  ship  of  the  Malku  (or  royal) 
canal ' 5  —  an  indication,  at  the  same  time,  of  the  place  where 
the  cult  of  Nam  was  carried  on. 

The  Priests  and  Priestesses. 

At  a  certain  stage  in  the  religious  development  of  a  people, 
the  priesthood  is  closely  linked  to  political  leadership.     The 

1  See  the  illustration  in  Snouck-Hurgronje  Mekka,  pi.  V. 

-  I.c,  of  the  god,  E-Kua  being  the  name  of  the  sacred  chamber  in  Marduk's 
temple  at  Babylon.     See  p.  629,  note  1. 

3  See  p.  60. 

4  See  p.  282. 

5  The  largest  canal  in  Babylonia. 


656  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION 

earliest  form  of  government  in  the  Euphrates  Valley  is  theo- 
cratic, and  we  can  still  discern  some  of  the  steps  in  the  process 
that  led  to  the  differentiation  of  the  priest  from  the  secular 
ruler.  To  the  latest  times,  the  kings  retain  among  their  titles 
some1  which  have  reference  to  the  religious  functions  once 
exercised  by  them.  The  king  who  continued  to  be  regarded  as 
the  representative,  of  a  god,  nominated  by  some  deity  to  a  lofty 
position  of  trust  and  power,  stood  nearer  to  the  gods  than  his 
subjects.  In  a  certain  sense,  the  king  remained  the  priest  par 
excellence.  Hence  the  prominent  part  played  by  the  ruler  in 
the  religious  literature  of  the  country.  A  large  proportion  of 
the  hymns  were  composed  for  royalty.  The  most  elaborate 
ritual  dealt  with  the  endeavor  to  secure  oracles  that  might 
serve  as  a  guide  for  the  rulers.  Astronomical  reports  were 
made  and  long  series  of  omen  tablets  prepared  for  the  use  of 
the  royal  household.  The  calendars  furnished  regulations  for 
the  conduct  of  the  kings.  A  ceremonial  error,  an  offence 
against  the  gods  on  the  part  of  the  kings,  was  certain  of 
being  followed  by  disastrous  consequences  for  the  whole 
country. 

But  even  the  smallest  sanctuaries  required  some  service,  and 
it  was  not  long  before  the  religious  interests  were  entrusted  into 
the  hands  of  those  who  devoted  themselves  to  administering  the 
affairs  of  the  temples.  The  guardians  of  the  shrines  became 
the  priests  in  fact,  long  before  the  priesthood  of  the  rulers 
became  little  more  than  a  theory;  and  as  the  temples  grew  to 
larger  proportions,  the  service  was  divided  up  among  various 
classes  of  priests. 

The  general  name  for  priests  was  shangit,  which,  by  a  plausible 
etymology  suggested  by  Jensen,2  indicates  the  function  of  the 
priest  as  the  one  who  presides  over  the  sacrifices.     But  this 

1  /■'.,..  ishakku. 

-  S/ia  and  na&&,  i.e., '  the  one  over  the  sacrifice.'  Zeitschrift  fiir  Assyriologie,  vii. 
174,  note. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  657 

function    represents    only  one  phase   of  the   priestly  office  in 
Babylonia,   and  not  the   most   important  one,  by  .any  means. 
For  the  people,  the  priest  was  primarily  the  one  who  could  drive 
evil  demons  out  of  the  body  of  the  person  smitten  with  disease, 
who  could  thwart  the  power  of  wizards  and  witches,  who  could 
ward  off  the  attacks  of  mischievous  spirits,  or  who  could  prog- 
nosticate the  future  and  determine   the  intention  or  the  will 
of  the  gods.     The  offering  of  sacrifices  was  one  of  the  means 
to  accomplish  this  end,  but  it  is  significant  that  many  of  the 
names  used  to  designate  the  priestly  classes  have  reference  to 
the  priest's  position  as  the  exorciser  of  evil  spirts  or  his  power 
to  secure  a  divine  oracle  or  to  foretell  the  future,  and  not  to 
his  function  as  sacrificer.     Such  names  are  mashmashu,  the 
general  term  for  '  the  charmer ' ;  kalu,  so  called,  perhaps,  as 
the  'restrained  of  the  demons,  the  one  who  keeps  them  in 
check;  /agaric,  a  synonym  of  kalu  ;    makhkhu,   'soothsayer'; 
surru,  a  term  which  is  still  obscure  ;  shailu,  the  '  inquirer,'  who 
obtains    an    oracle    through    the   dead   or   through   the   gods  ; 
mushUu,  '  necromancer  ';  ashipu  or  ishippu,  '  sorcerer.' l    These 
names  probably  do  not  exhaust  the  various  kinds  of  'magicians  ' 
that  were  to  be  found  among  the  Babylonian  priests.     In  the 
eighteenth  chapter  of  Deuteronomy,  no  less  than  eleven  classes 
of  magic  workers  are  enumerated,  and  there  can  be  little  doubt 
but  that  the  Pentateuchal  opposition  against  the  necromancers, 
sorcerers,    soothsayers,  and   the  like  is  aimed  chiefly  against 
Babylonish  customs.     We  have  seen  in  previous  chapters  how 
largely  the  element  of  magic  enters  into  the  religious  rites  and 
literature  of  the  Babylonian- Assyrian  religion  and  how  persistent 
an  element  it  is.     For  the  masses,  the  priest  remained  essentially 
a  mashmashu.    But  we  have  also  names  like  ramku  and  nisakku, 
'  libation  pourer,'  which  emphasize  the  sacrificial  functions  of 

1  That  these  terms  represent  classes  of  priests  is  indicated  by  the  fact  that  the 
abstract  derivatives  shangutu,  kalutu,  ishipputu,  and  also  ramkutu  (see  below)  arc 
used  as  general  terms  for  priesthood. 


65S  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

the  priest  ;  and  in  an  interesting  list  of  temple  servitors,1  '  the 
dirge  singers  '  are  introduced  as  a  special  class,  and  appropri- 
ately designated  as  munambu, '  wailer,'  and  lallaru, '  howler.'  Of 
some  terms  in  this  list,  like  asinnu,  it  is  doubtful  whether  they 
indicate  a  special  class  of  priests  or  are  terms  for  servitors  in 
general,  attached  to  a  temple ;  in  the  case  of  others,  like  nash 
pilakki,  '  ax  carrier,'  we  do  not  know  exactly  of  what  nature  the 
service  was.2  Lastly,  priests  in  their  capacity  as  scribes"  and 
as  judges  '  formed  another  distinct  class,  though  it  should  be 
noted  that  in  Assyria  we  meet  with  scribes  occasionally  who 
are  not  priests.5 

The  range  thus  covered  by  the  temple  service,  —  magic,  ora- 
cles, sacrifices,  the  lament  for  the  dead,  and  the  judiciary,  —  is 
exceedingly  large.  The  subdivisions,  no  doubt,  varied  in  each 
center.  In  the  smaller  sanctuaries,  those  who  offered  the  sac- 
rifices may  also  have  served  as  soothsayers  and  dirge  singers, 
and  the  judicial  functions  may  likewise  have  been  in  the  same 
hands  as  those  who  performed  other  services.  On  the  other 
hand,  in  a  temple  like  K-Sagila  the  classes  and  subclasses  must 
have  been  very  numerous.  Of  the  details  of  the  organization 
we  as  yet  know  very  little.  There  was  a  high  priest,  known  as 
the  shangam-makhfi,6  and  from  the  existence  of  a  title  like 
sur-makhu,  —that  is,  the  chief  surrti,1  —  we  may  conclude 
that  each  class  of  priests  had  its  chief  likewise.  With  the 
natural  tendency  in  ancient  civilizations  for  professions  to  be- 
come vested  in  families,  the  priests  in  the  course  of  time 
became  a  caste ;  but  there  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  entrance 
into  this  caste  was  only  possible  through  the  accident  of  birth. 
That  instruction  in  the  reading  and  writing  of  the  cuneiform 
characters,  and  hence  the  introduction  into  the  literature,  was 

1  II  K.  j2,  no.  3.  5  E.g.,  IIIR.  4S,  no.  6,  11.  26,  27. 

-'  \    i"  .11  carrier  of  Marduk  '  occurs  in  contract  tablets. 

;!  Dupsharru.  ,;  Skangu  ^  priest;  makhu  —great. 

•'  Daianu.  7  See  above,  p.  (157. 


THE    TEMPLES   AX  J)    THE    CULT.  659 

open  to  others  than  the  scions  of  priests  is  shown  by  the  pres- 
ence in   the  legal  literature  of  formal  contracts  for  instruction 
between  teachers  and  pupils  who  belong  to  the  '  laity.'     These 
pupils  could  become  scribes  and  judges,  and  their  standing  as 
'priests'  represented   merely  the   Babylonian  equivalent  to  a 
modern  university  degree.      For  such  service  as  the  bewailing 
of  the  dead  and  as  musicians,  persons  were  initiated  who  were 
taken  from  various  classes  and  likewise  for  the  menial  duties 
of  the  temples,  and  it  is  only  when  we  come  to  the  more  dis- 
tinctive priestly  functions,  like  the  exorcising  of  evil   spirits, 
securing  an  oracle,  or  performing  sacrifices,  that  the  rules  lim- 
iting these  privileges  to  certain  families  were  iron  bound.     As 
among  the   Hebrews  and   other  nations,  stress  was  laid   also 
upon    freedom    from    physical    blemishes   in   the   case   of    the 
priests.     The   leper,  we  learn,  was  not  fit  for  the  priesthood.1 
In  the  astronomical  reports  that  were  spoken  of  in  a  previous 
chapter,2  there  are   references  to  the  '  watches  '  kept  by  the 
astronomers.      These  .  watches,    however,    were    probably    not 
observed  for  astronomical  purposes  alone,  but  represent  the 
time  division,  as  among  the   Hebrews,  for  the  temple  service. 
There  were  three  night  watches  among  the  Babylonians,3  and, 
in    all    probability,    therefore,    three    day    watches    likewise. 
Relays  of  priests  were  appointed  in  the  large  sanctuaries  for 
service   during   the   continuance   of   each  watch,  and  we  may 
some   day  find   that  the    Hebrews  obtained   their   number    of 
twenty-four  priests  for  each  '  watch '  from  a  custom  prevailing 
in  some  Babylonian  temple. 

An  interesting  feature  of  the  Babylonian  priesthood  is  the 
position  occupied  by  the  woman.  In  the  historical  texts  from 
the    days   of    Hammurabi    onward,   the    references    to   women 

1  Delitzsch,  Assyr.  Handwortcrlntck,  p.  149b. 

2  See  pp.  356  seq. 

3  On  these  night  watches,  see  Delitzsch's  article  in  the  Zeitschrift  fur  Keilschrift- 

forschtuig,  ii.  2S4-294. 


660  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

attached  to  the  service  of  temples  are  not  infrequent.  Gudea 
expressly  mentions  the  'wailing  women,'  and  there  is  every 
reason  to  believe  that  the  female  wailers,  like  the  male  ones, 
belong  to  some  priestly  class.  Again,  examples  of  women  as 
exorcisers  and  as  furnishing  oracles1  may  be  instanced  in 
Babylonia  as  well  as  in  Assyria,  and  we  have  also  references  to 
female  musicians  as  late  as  the  days  of  Ashurbanabal.  A 
specially  significant  role  was  played  by  the  priestesses  in 
Ishtar's  temple  at  Erech,  and  probably  at  other  places  where 
the  cult  of  the  great  mother  goddess  was  carried  on.  The 
Ishtar  priestess  was  known  by  the  general  term  of  Kadishtu,  - 
that  is,  'the  holy  one,'-  -  or  Ishtaritum,  'devoted  to  Ishtar'; 
but,  from  the  various  other  names  for  the  sacred  harlot  that  we 
come  across,"  it  would  appear  that  the  priestesses  were  divided 
into  various  classes,  precisely  like  the  priests.  That  in  the 
ceremonies  of  initiation  at  Erech,  and  perhaps  elsewhere, 
some  rites  were  observed  that  on  the  surface  appeared  obscene 
is  eminently  likely  ;  but  there  is  no  evidence  that  obscene 
rites,  as  instanced  by  Herodotus,  formed  part  of  the  regular 
cult  of  the  goddess.  Except  in  the  case  of  the  Ishtar  wor- 
ship, the  general  observation  may  be  made  that  the  position  of 
the  priestess  is  more  prominent  in  the  early  period  of  Baby- 
lonian history  than  in  the  days  when  the  culture  and  power  of 
Babylonia  and  Assyria  reached  its  zenith. 

Sacrifices  and  Votive  Offerings. 

The  researches  of  Robertson  Smith3  and  of  others  have 
shown  that  the  oldest  Semitic  view  of  sacrifice  was  that  of  a 
meal,  shared  by  the  worshipper  with  the  deity  to  be  honored  or 

1  See  above,  pp.  26;,  34  5. 

2  Kharimtu,  Kizritu,    Ukhatn.  Shamuktu.     See  II K.  32,  no.  2,   11.  31-36,  and 

184. 

S  article  on  "  Sacrifice  "  in  the  oth  edition  of  the  Encyclopaedia  Rritannica 
and  his  Religion  of  the  Semites,  Lectures  Vl-Xl. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  661 

propitiated.     Dependent  as  we  are  in  the  case  of  the  Baby- 
lonian-Assyrian religion  for  our  knowledge  of  sacrifices  upon 
incidental  references  in  historical  or  religious  texts,  it  is  not 
possible  to  say  how  far  the  Semitic  dwellers  of  the  Euphrates 
Valley  were  influenced  by  the  primitive  conception  of  sacrifice. 
Historical   and   votive   inscriptions  and   a    religious    literature 
belong    to    a    comparatively   advanced    stage    of    culture,   and 
earlier  views  of  sacrifice  that  may  have  existed  were  necessarily 
modified  in  the  process  of  adaptation  to  later  conditions.     The 
organization  of  an  elaborate  cult  with  priests  and  numerous 
temple  servitors  changes  the  sacrifices  into  a  means  of  income 
for  the  temple.     The  deity's  representatives  receive  the  share 
originally    intended    for    the    deity    himself;    and,   instead    of 
sanctifying  the  offering  to  a  god  by  contact  with  the  sacred 
element  fire,  the  temple  accepts  the  offering  for  its  own  use. 
It  is  likely,  however,  that  among  the  Babylonians,  as  among 
the  Hebrews,  certain  parts  of  the  animal  which  were  not  fit  to 
eat 1  were  burned  as  a  symbolical  homage  to  a  god.     No  refer- 
ences have  as  yet  been  found  pointing  to  any  special  sanctity 
that  was  attached  to  the  blood;  but  it  is  eminently  likely  that 
the  blood  was  regarded  at  all  times  as  the  special  property  of 
the   gods,   and  was  poured  on   the  altar.     The  two  kinds   of 
sacrifice  —  animals   and    vegetable  products  —  date  from    the 
earliest  period  of  the  Babylonian  religion  of  which  we  have 
any  knowledge.     In  a  long  list  of  offerings,  Gudea2  includes 
oxen,  sheep,  goats,  lambs,  fish,  birds  (as  eagles,  cranes,3  etc.), 
and   also   such    products   as   dates,  milk,   and    greens.      From 
other  sources  we  may  add  gazelles,  date  wine,  butter,  cream, 
honey,  garlic,  corn,  herbs,  oil,  spices,  and  incense.     Stress  is 
laid  upon  the  quality  of  the  sacrifice.4     The  animals  must  be 

1  So  in  the  regulations  of  the  priestly  code  (Lev.  iii.  14-17)- 

2  Inscription  G,  cols,  iii— vi- 

3  Hardly  '  roosters,'  as  Jensen  (Kosmologic,  p.  517)  proposes. 

4  See,  e.g.,  Gudea,  Inscription  F,  cols,  iii,  iv. 


662  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

without  blemish,  and  if  well  nurtured,  they  would  be  all  the 
more  pleasing  in  the  sight  of  the  gods.  The  omission  of  dogs 
and  swine  is  not  accidental.  Under  that  double  aspect  of 
sanctity  which  we  find  among  the  Uabylonians  as  among  so 
many  nations,  certain  animals  were  too  sacred  to  be  offered, 
and,  on  the  other  hand,  they  were  regarded  as  unclean.1  In 
treating  of  the  omen  texts  we  already  had  occasion  to  speak  of 
the  peculiar  ideas  attached  to  the  clog  by  the  Babylonians,2 
and  there  is  sufficient  evidence  to  show  that  the  boar  likewise 
was  viewed  as  a  sacred  animal,  at  least  in  certain  parts  of 
Babylonia.3  No  certain  traces  of  human  sacrifices  have  been 
found,  either  in  Babylonian  literature  or  in  artistic  representa- 
tions.4 If  the  rite  was  ever  practised  among  the  Babylonians 
or  Assyrians  it  must  have  been  at  a  very  early  period  —  earlier 
than  any  of  which  we  as  yet  have  any  knowledge.  On  the 
other  hand,  a  trace  of  some  primitive  form  of  tree  worship  may 
be  recognized  in  the  representation,  so  frequent  on  seal  cylin- 
ders and  monuments,  of  curious  figures,  in  part  human,  in  part 
animal,  standing  in  front  of  the  palm  tree.5  The  symbol 
belongs  to  Assyria  as  well  as  to  Babylonia.  In  some  of  the 
designs  the  figures  —  human  heads  and  bodies  but  furnished 
with  large  wings  —  appear  to  be  in  the  act  of  artificially  fer- 
tilizing the  palm  tree  by  scattering  the  male  blossom  over  the 
female  palm.  This  plausible  interpretation  first  suggested  by 
E.  B.  Tylor6  carries  with  it  the  conclusion  that  the  importance 

1  Sec  on  this  general  subject  Mafillier's  admirable  articles,  "  La  Place  du  Totem- 
ilution  religieuse  "  i  Revue  </<•  VHistoire  des  Religions,  xxxvi). 

Vifpur,  ii.  i  ; i .  and  Ililprecht,  Cuneiform  Texts,  ix.  pi.  xiii. 
■•  ;,,1    " '  'ii  Sonic  Babylonian  Cylinders  supposed  to  represent  Human  Sac- 
rifices Uner.  Oriental  Soc,  May,  1888,  pp.  xxviii-xxx). 

Monuments  of  Ninevek,  ist  series,  pis.  7,  25  ;    Place,  Nineve 
■  pi.  46,  etc. 

Winged  Figures  of  the  Assyrian  and  Other  Ancient  Monuments,"  Proc. 
Arch.,  xii  eeal  10  Bonavia,  "  The  Sacred  Trees  of  the  Assyrian 

Monumei  I  vlonian  and  Oriental  Record,  vols,  iii,  iv,  whose  conclusions,  how- 

not  always  acceptable. 


THE    TEMPLES   AND    THE    CULT.  663 

of  palm  culture  in  the  Euphrates  Valley  not  only  gave  the 
palm  the  character  of  a  sacred  tree,  but  lent  to  the  symbol  a 
wider  significance  to  a  more  advanced  age,  as  illustrating  fer- 
tility and  blessings  in  general.  The  scene,  reproduced  in  almost 
endless  variations  in  which  both  trees  and  figures  become 
conventionalized,  came  to  be  regarded  as  a  symbol  of  adora- 
tion and  worship  in  general.  As  such,  it  survived  in  religious 
art  and  continued  to  be  pictured  on  seal  cylinders  to  a  late  age. 
The  occasions  on  which  sacrifices  were  brought  were 
frequent.  If  the  gods  were  to  be  consulted  for  the  purpose 
of  obtaining  an  oracle,  elaborate  offerings  formed  a  necessary 
preliminary.  In  this  case,  the  animals  presented  at  the  altar 
served  a  double  purpose.1  They  constituted  a  means  of 
propitiating  the  god  in  favor  of  the  petitioner,  and  at  the  same 
time  the  inspection  of  certain  parts  of  the  animal  served  as  an 
omen  in  determining  what  was  the  will  of  the  god  appealed  to. 
When  the  foundations  were  to  be  laid  for  a  temple  or  a  palace, 
it  was  especially  important  to  secure  the  favor  of  the  gods  by 
suitable  offerings,  and,  similarly,  when  a  canal  was  to  be  built 
or  any  other  work  of  a  public  character  undertaken.  Again, 
upon  the  dedication  of  a  sacred  edifice  or  of  a  palace,  or  upon 
completing  the  work  of  restoration  of  a  temple,  sheep  and 
oxen  in  abundance  were  offered  to  the  gods,  as  well  as  various 
kinds  of  birds  and  the  produce  of  the  orchards  and  fields. 
The  Babylonian  rulers  appear  to  have  accompanied  their 
sacrifices  on  such  occasions  with  prayers,  and  in  a  previous 
chapter  we  had  occasion  to  discuss  some  of  these  dedicatory 
invocations.2  In  the  Assyrian  inscriptions,  prayers  are  specifi- 
cally referred  to  only  as  being  offered  before  setting  out  on  an 
expedition,  before  a  battle,  or  when  the  kings  find  themselves 
in  distress,3  so  that  if  the  Babylonian  custom  likewise  prevailed 

1  See  chapter  xix,  "  Oracles  and  Omens." 

2  See  pp.  295-299. 

3  See,  e.g.,  Sennacherib,  IK.  47,  col.  v.  11.  50-54  :  Ashurbanabal,  Rassam  Cylinder, 
col.  ii.  1.  1  Ui,  and  col.  iv.  1.  9. 


664  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

in  Assyria,  it  did  not  form  a  necessary  part  of  the  sacrificial 
ritual.  The  sacrifice  as  a  pure  homage  is  illustrated  by  the 
zeal  which  the  Assyrian  kings  manifest  towards  honoring  the 
great  temples  of  the  south.  The  northern  rulers  were  anxious 
.it  all  times  to  reconcile  the  southern  population  to  Assyrian 
control,  and  it  was  no  doubt  gratifying  to  the  south  to  find 
Tiglathpileser  II.,1  upon  entering  the  ancient  centers  like 
Sippar,  Nippur,  Babylon,  Borsippa,  Cuthah,  Kish,  Dilbat,  and 
Erech,  proceeding  to  the  temples  in  those  places  in  order  to 
offer  his  sacrifices.  The  example  of  Tiglathpileser  is  followed 
by  his  successors  down  through  the  time  of  Ashurbanabal. 
As  often  as  the  Assyrian  monarchs  may  have  had  occasion  to 
proceed  to  Babylonia — and  the  occasions  were  frequent, 
owing  to  the  constant  disposition  of  the  south  to  throw  off  the 
hated  yoke  —  they  emphasized  their  devotion  to  Marduk, 
Nabu,  En-lil,  Shamash,  and  the  other  gods  who  had  their 
seats  in  the  south.  Sargon2  goes  so  far  in  this  homage  as 
to  pose  as  the  reorganizer  of  the  cults  of  Sippar,  Nippur,  Bor 
sippa,  and  Babylon,  and  of  restoring  the  income  to  temples 
in  other  places.0  But  there  was  another  side  to  this  homage 
that  must  not  be  overlooked.  By  sacrificing  in  the  Babylonian 
temples,  the  Assyrian  rulers  indicated  their  political  control 
over  the  south.  Such  homage  as  they  manifested  was  the 
exclusive  privilege  of  legitimate  rulers,  and  it  was  important 
for  the  Assyrians  to  legitimize  their  control  over  the  south. 

A  phase  of  sacrifice  is  represented  by  the  libations  of  oil 
and  wine  to  which  frequent  references  are  found  in  the 
historical  texts.  It  appears  to  have  been  customary  to  anoint 
the  foundation  stones  of  temples  and  palaces  with  oil  and 
wine.  Over  the  thresholds,  too,  and  over  the  stones  —  bearing 
commemorative  or  votive  inscriptions  —  libations  of  oil,  honey, 
and  wine  were  poured. 

1  I  IK-  '<:■  m.12.  •-:  Cylinder,  1.4. 

8  Winckler,  Die  Keilschrifttex  '    Sai    on's  Prunkinschrift,  11.  134,  135. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  665 

Nebopolassar1  speaks  of  placing  sweet  herbs  under  the  walls, 
and  Nabonnedos2  pours  oil  over  the  bolts  and  doors,  as  well 
as  on  the  thresholds  of  the  Shamash  temple  at  Sippar,  and 
fills  the  temple  with  the  aroma  of  frankincense.  Much  impor- 
tance was  attached  to  this  rite,  and  the  kings  take  frequent 
occasion  to  adjure  their  successors  who  may  in  the  course  of 
restoring  edifices  come  across  stones  bearing  the  record  of 
former  builders,  to  anoint  these  stones  with  oil  and  offer 
sacrifices.3  Thus,  Nabonnedos,4  when  he  finds  the  inscription 
of  Ashurbanabal  in  the  Shamash  temple  at  Sippar,  carefully 
obeys  the  injunction.  The  rite  bears  all  the  marks  of  great 
antiquity.  The  instances  of  its  occurrence  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment —  notably  in  the  case  of  Jacob's  act  of  pouring  oil  over 
the  holy  stone  at  Bethel5 — confirm  this  view;  and  the  inter- 
pretation for  the  rite  suggested  by  Robertson  Smith  ,;  that  the 
oil  was  originally  the  fat  of  the  sacrificed  animal  smeared  over 
an  object  or  a  person,  as  a  means  of  investing  them  with 
sanctity,  accounts  satisfactorily  for  the  invariable  juxtaposition 
in  the  cuneiform  texts  of  sacrificial  offerings  with  the  anoint- 
ing of  the  inscribed  stones. 

We  have  no  evidence  that  the  rulers  of  Babylonia  and 
Assyria  were  anointed  with  oil  on  their  installation,  though 
it  is  not  improbable  that  such  was  the  case.  The  use  of  the 
oil  in  this  case  is  but  a  modification  of  the  same  rite,  which,  it 
is  to  be  noted,  loses  some  of  its  ancient  force  by  the  spread  of 
the  custom  in  the  Orient  of  unguents  as  a  part  of  the  toilet.7 
The  use  of  odorous  herbs,  which,  we  have  seen,  were  placed 
under  the  walls,  and  of  honey  and  wine,  which  were  poured 
over  bolts,8  is  also  directly  connected  with  the  sacrificial  cult. 

1  Hilprecht,  Old  Babylonian  Inscriptions,  i.  i,  pi.  33,  col.  ii.  11.  54-56- 

2  VR.  65,  col.  ii.  1.  13. 

3  See,  e.g.,  Tiglathpileser  I.,  IR.  if,,  col.  viii.  11.  56,  57  •  Sennacherib,  IR.  47,  col. 
vi.  1.  67-71.  6  Religion  of  the  Semites,  p.  364. 

4  VR.  64,  col.  ii.  11.  43-45.  "'  See  Robertson  Smith,  ib.  p.  215. 

5  Gen.  xxviii.  iS.  8  VR.  61,  col.  iv.  11.  33, 34. 


666  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION 

The  libation  in  its  purer  form  appears  in  the  custom  of  the 
Assyrian  kings  of  pouring  wine  over  the  animal  slain  by  them 
in  the  hunt.  The  act  is  intended  to  secure  divine  favor  towards 
a  deed  which  invoked  the  destruction  of  something  that  by  all 
ancient  nations  was  held  sacred,  namely,  life.  Even  a  despot 
of  Assyria  felt  that  to  wantonly  destroy  life  could  not  be  safely 
undertaken  without  making  sure  of  the  consent  of  the  gods. 
Significantly  enough,  Ashurbanabal  offers  his  libations  after 
the  lion  or  bull  hunts  to  Ishtar  as  the  "goddess  of  battle."1 
The  animal  is  sanctified  by  being  devoted  to  a  goddess,  just 
as  the  victims  in  a  battle  constitute  the  conqueror's  homage 
offered  to  the  gods  who  came  to  his  assistance. 

Sacrifices  with  libations  are  so  frequently  represented  on  the 
seal  cylinder  that  this  testimony  alone  would  suffice  to  vouch 
for  the  importance  attached  to  this  rite  in  the  cult.  One  of 
the  most  archaic  specimens  of  Babylonian  art2  represents  a 
worshipper,  entirely  naked,  pouring  a  libation  into  a  large  cup 
which  stands  on  an  altar.  Behind  the  altar  sits  a  goddess  who 
is  probably  A  or  Malkatu,  the  consort  of  the  sun-god.  The 
naked  worshipper  is  by  no  means  an  uncommon  figure  in  the 
early  Babylonian  art,8  and  it  would  appear  that  at  one  time  it 
was  customary  to  remove  one's  garments  preliminary  to  step- 
pin-  into  the  god's  presence,  just  as  among  the  Arabs  the  cult 
of  the  Caaba  in  Mecca  was  conducted  by  the  worshippers  at 
an  earl}-  period  without  their  clothes.1  The  custom  so  fre- 
quently referred  to  in  the  Old  Testament  to  remove  one's  shoes 
upon  entering  sacred  territory,  --  a  custom  still  observed  by  the 
modern  Muslim,  who  leaves  his  shoes  outside  of  the  Mosque,  — 
may  be  regarded  as  an  indication  that  at  an  earlier  period 
people  removed  their  garments  as  well  as  the  sandals.      It  may 

1  I R.  ;.  no.  i\. 

-  Heuzey  in  De  £  tvertes  en  Chaldee,  p.  209. 

several  exampli  m  in  De  Sarzec's  Decouvertes  en  Chaldee.   See  also  Ward, 

May,  [8S8,  p.  N\i\,  and  Peters'  Nippur,  ii.  pi.  2. 
*  Wellhausen,  Rcste  Arabischen  Hcidenthitms,  p.  1 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT. 


Gbl 


be  that  the  order  to  take  off  the  sandal  alone,  as  recorded 
in  the  Old  Testament,  is  nothing  but  a  euphemistic  phrase 
(suggested  by  a  more  refined  age)  to  strip  oneself.  Certainly, 
when  we  find  that  in  the  clays  of  Saul,  the  seers  went  about 
naked,  there  can  no  longer  be  any  doubt  that  there  was  a  time 
when  the  Hebrews,  too,  like  the  Arabs  and  Babylonians, 
entered  the  holy  presence  naked. 

The  institution  of  daily  sacrifices  is  vouched  for  in  the  case 
of  the  larger  religious  centers  like  Babylonia,  Borsippa,  Sippar, 
Cuthah,  as  well  as  Nineveh  for  the  late  periods.  Nebuchad- 
nezzar, for  example,  tells  us1  that  he  provided  for  a  sacrifice  of 
six  lambs  daily  in  the  temple  E-shidlam  at  Cuthah,  sacred  to 
Nergal  and  Laz  ;  while  for  Nabu's  temple  at  Borsippa,  the 
daily  sacrifices  were  arranged  on  a  still  larger  scale,  and 
included  two  fattened  bulls  of  perfect  form,  sixteen  smaller 
animals,  besides  offerings  of  fish,  birds,  leek,  various  kinds  of 
wine,  honey,  cream,  and  the  finest  oil,  —  all  intended,  as  the  king 
tells  us,  for  the  table  of  Nabu  and  his  consort.  No  doubt  the 
daily  official  sacrifices  at  Marduk's  temple  were  even  more 
elaborate.  The  custom  of  regular  sacrifices  in  the  larger  tem- 
ples may  be  traced  back  to  an  early  period.  The  technical 
terms  for  such  sacrifices  are  sattfiku  and  ginu.  Both  terms 
convey  the  idea  of  being  "  fixed,"  perpetual,'2  and  suggest  a 
comparison  with  the  Pentateuchal  institution  of  the  tarn  it/;''  i.e., 
the  daily  sacrifice.  Whenever  the  kings  in  their  inscriptions 
mention  the  regular  sacrifices,  it  is  in  almost  all  cases  with 
reference  to  their  reinstitution  of  an  old  custom  that  had  been 
allowed  to  fall  into  neglect  (owing  to  political  disturbances 
which  always  affected  the  temples),  and  not  as  an  innovation. 
Innovations  were  limited  to  increasing  the  amounts  of  these 


1  Grotefend  Cylinder,  col.  ii.  11.  36-39. 

2  They  are  also  used  in  the  sense  of  any  permanent  provision  for  a  temple  through 
an  endowment. 

3  Lit., '  the  steady  '  sacrifice.     See  the  technical  employment,  I  >an.  viii.  1 1 . 


BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

regular  sacrifices.  So,  for  example,  Nabubaliddin  restores  and 
increases  the  gint  of  tfie  great  temple  E-babbara  at  Sippar.1 
But  regular  sacrifices  do  not  necessarily  involve  daily  offerings. 
Tlic  same  terms,  ginii  and  sattuku,  are  applied  frequently  to 
monthly  offerings,  and  except  in  the  large  religious  centers, 
regular  sacrifices  were  in  all  probabilities  brought  on  certain 
days  of  each  month,  and  not  daily.  The  days  thus  singled 
out,  as  will  be  shown  further  on,  differed  for  various  sanctu- 
aries. It  would  be  important  if  we  could  determine  the  share 
in  these  regular  sacrifices  taken  by  the  people  at  large,  but  the 
material  at  hand  does  not  suffice  for  settling  the  question. 
There  are  frequent  references  to  tithes  in  the  clay  tablets 
forming  part  of  the  archives  of  temples,  and  monthly  tributes 
are  also  mentioned.  We  certainly  may  conclude  from  these 
references  that  the  people  were  taxed  in  some  way  for  the  sup- 
port of  the  temples.  Ashurbanabal  in  one  place  speaks  of 
reimposing  upon  the  population  of  the  south  the  provision  for 
the  sattfiku  and  ginfi  due  to  Ashur  and  Belit2  and  the  gods  of 
Assyria;  but,  for  all  that,  it  is  not  certain  that  the  regular  sac- 
rifices at  the  temples  partook  of  a  popular  character.  One 
gains  the  impression  that,  except  on  the  occasions  when  the 
people  came  to  the  sanctuaries  for  individual  purposes,  the 
masses  as  such  had  but  comparatively  little  share  in  it.  In 
this  respect  the  cult  of  the  Hebrews,  which  has  so  many  points 
in  common  with  the  Babylonian  ritual  as  to  justify  the  hypoth- 
esis that  the  details  of  sacrificial  regulations  in  the  priestly 
code  are  largely  derived  from  practices  in  Babylonian  temples, 
was  more  democratic.  Closely  attached  as  the  Babylonians 
were  to  their  sanctuaries,  the  regular  sacrifices  do  not  appear 
to  have  been  an  active  factor  in  maintaining  this  attachment. 
A  more  decidedly  popular  character  is  apparent  in  the  votive 
rings  made  to  the  temples.     These  offerings  cover  a  wide 

1  VR.  i.i.  col.  iv.  1.  .|S-col.  v.  1.6;  see  also  Ashurbanabal,  Rassam  Cylinder,  col.  iv. 
-  Belit  here  used  for  Ashur's  consort;  see  p.  226. 


THE    TEMPLES   AND    THE    CULT. 


669 


range.  Rulers  and  people  alike  felt  prompted  to  make  gifts  to 
the  sanctuaries  on  special  occasions,  either  as  a  direct  homage 
to  the  gods  or  with  the  avowed  purpose  and  hope  of  securing 
divine  favor  or  divine  intercession. 

The  statues  of  themselves  which  the  rulers  from  the  days  of 
Gudea1  on  were  fond  of  erecting  were  dedicated  by  them  as 
offerings  to  the  gods,  and  this  avowed  aim  tempers,  in  a  meas- 
ure, the  vanity  which   no  doubt  was  the  mainspring  of  their 
action.     The    statues   were  placed   in   the  temples,  and  from 
Gudea2  we  learn  of  the  elaborate  ceremonies  connected  with 
the  dedication  of  one  of  the  king's  colossal  blocks  of  diorite. 
For  seven  days  all  manual  labor  was  interrupted  in  Lagash. 
Masters  and  slaves  shared  in  the  festivities.     The  temple  of 
Nin-girsu  is  sanctified  anew  by  purification  rites,  and  the  statue 
is  formally  presented  to  the  god  amidst  sacrifices  and  offerings 
of  rich  gifts.     The  account  given  in  the  Book  of  Daniel3  of  the 
dedication  of  Nebuchadnezzar's  statue  may  be  regarded  as  an 
equally  authentic  picture  of  a  custom  that  survived  to  the  clos- 
ing days  of  the  Babylonian  monarchy,  except  that  we  have  no 
proof  that  divine   honors   were   paid   to  these   statues.4     The 
front,  sides,  and  back  of  Gudea's  images  were  covered  with 
inscriptions,  partly  of  a  commemorative  character,  but  in  part, 
also,  conveying  a  dedication  to  Nin-girsu.     Similarly,  the  steles 
of  the  Assyrian  kings,  set  up  by  them  either  in  the  temples  or 
on  the  highways  beyond  the  confines  of  Assyria,  and  which 
had  images   of   the  rulers   sculptured  on  them  in  high  relief, 
were  covered  with  inscriptions,  devoted  primarily  to  celebrat- 
ing the    deeds   of   the  kings  ;    but,  since   the  victories  of   the 
armies  were  ascribed  to  the  assistance  furnished  by  the  gods, 
an  homage  to  Ashur  or  some  other  deity  was  involved   in  the 

1  See  p.  652. 

2  Inscription  B,  cols,  vii-viii. 

3  Chapter  iii.  1-7. 

4  This  touch  appears  to  have  been  added  by  the  Hebrew  writer.     Nebuchadnezzar 

is  but  a  disguise  for  Antiochus  Epiphanes. 


670  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

recital.  That  the  gods  were  accorded  a  minor  share  of  the 
glory  was  but  in  keeping  with  the  pride  of  the  Assyrian  rulers, 
who  were  less  affected  than  the  rulers  of  the  south  by  the 
votive  character  of  the  statues. 

Both  Babylonians  and  Assyrians,  however,  unite  in  making 
images  of  the  gods  as  a  distinct  homage,  and  in  giving  elabo- 
rate presents  of  gold,  silver,  precious  stones,  costly  woods,  and 
garments  to  the  sanctuaries  as  votive  offerings  to  the  gods. 
These  presents  were  used  in  the  decoration  of  temples  and 
shrines,  as  well  as  of  the  statues  of  the  gods  or  as  direct  con- 
tributions to  the  temple  treasury.  Celebrations  of  victories 
were  chosen  as  particularly  appropriate  occasions  for  making 
such  votive  offerings.  So  Agumkakrimi,  upon  bringing  back 
to  K-Sagila  the  statues  of  Marduk  and  Sarpanitum  that  had 
been  taken  away  by  ruthless  hands,  bestows  rich  gifts  upon 
the  temples  and  describes1  at  great  length  the  costly  garments 
embroidered  with  gold  and  studded  with  precious  stones  that 
were  hung  on  Marduk  and  his  consort.  Equally  vivid  is  the 
description  of  the  high,  conical-shaped  caps,  made  of  lapis 
lazuli  and  gold,  and  decorated,  furthermore,  with  various  kinds 
of  stones,  that  were  placed  on  the  heads  of  the  deities.  Gar- 
ments for  the  statues  of  the  gods  appear  to  have  been  favorite 
votive  offerings  at  all  times.  Nabubaliddin,  in  restoring  the 
cult  of  Shamash  at  Sippar,  makes  provisions  for  an  elaborate 
outfit    of  garments.-  specifying  different  garments  for  various 

tods  of  the  year.  It  would  appear  from  this  that  for  the 
various  festive  occasions  of  the  year,  the  garments  of  the  gods 
wvxv  changed,  much  as  in  other  religions -- including  the 
Catholic  Church — the  officiating  priests  are  robed  in  different 
garments  on  the  various  festive  or  solemn  occasions. 

Votive  tablets  or  discs  of  lapis  lazuli,  agate,  turquoise,  gold, 
silver,    copper,    antimony,    and    other    metals    with    dedicatory 

'  VK.   ;;.  col.  ii.  1.  22-col.  iii.  1.  12. 
2  VR.  6i,  col.  vi.  11.  [-13. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  671 

inscriptions  were  deposited  in  the  temples.  What  particular 
purpose  they  served  we  do  not  know.  As  a  specimen  of  the 
more  common  formula  on  these  tablets,  a  lapis  lazuli  tablet  of 
Nippur  may  be  chosen.     It  is  offered  by  a  Cassite  king,  and 

reads  *  as  follows : 

To  Bel 
His  lord 

Kadashman-Turgu 
For  his  life 
Presented. 

A  knob-shaped  object2  of  fine  limestone  contains  a  dedication 
in  similar  phrases  to  Marduk.  It  is  offered  by  Bel-epush,  who 
is  probably  identical  with  a  Babylonian  ruler  of  this  name  in 
the  seventh  century,  —  a  contemporary  of  Sennacherib: 3 

To  Marduk,  his  lord 

Bel-epush  for  the  preservation  of  his  life 

Made  and  presented. 

Kings,  however,  do  not  appear  to  be  the  only  ones  for  whom 

these    votive    offerings    were    prepared.       A    dedication    to    a 

personage  otherwise  unknown  and  to  all  appearances  a  layman 

reads :4 

To  Ea,5  his  lord,  Bel-zir, 

Son  of  Ea-ban, 

For  the  preservation  of  his  life 

Made  and  presented. 

The  formulas  are  thus  seen  to  be  conventional  ones,  though 
occasionally  the  inscription  is  somewhat  longer.  So,  for 
example,  Nazi-Maruttash,  another  Cassite  king,  puts  a  little 
prayer  on  a  votive  offering: 

1  Hilprecht,  Old  Babylonian  Inscriptions,  i.  I,  pi.  23,  no.  62. 

2  In  the  museum  at  Copenhagen.  Described  by  Knudtzon  in  the  Zeits.f.  Assyr., 
xii.  255. 

3  Tiele,  Babylonisch-Assyrische  Geschichte,  p.  287. 

4  In  the  Berlin  Museum  (Knudtzon,  ib\).  It  is  also  on  a  knob  which  contains 
remains  of  an  iron  stick,  to  which,  evidently,  the  knob  was  fastened. 

5  Written  A-e. 


672  BAB  YLOA  I.  IN  ASS )  'RIAN  RELIGION. 

[To  Bel,  his  lord] 

\.i/i  M.inittash, 

Son  of  Kurigalzu, 

To  hearken  to  his  supplication, 

To  be  favorable  to  his  prayer, 

To  accept  his  entreaty, 

To  lengthen  his  days, 

[He  made  and  presented]. 

This  inscription  appears,  as  Dr.   Hilprecht  informs  us,1  on  an 

ax  made  of  imitation   lapis  lazuli.2     Other  votive  inscriptions 

are  found  on  rings  and  on  knobs  of  ivory  or  magnesite.3  These 

various  designs  no  doubt  all  had  some  symbolical  significance. 

The  ring  suggests   some  ultimate  connection   between   votive 

offerings  and  amulets.     The  seal  cylinders,  we  know,  although 

put  to  practical  use  in  impressing  the  design  on  a  clay  tablet 

as  a  substitute  for  a  personal  signature,  were  also  regarded  as 

amulets,    and    this    accounts    for    the    frequency    with    which 

scenes   of    religious    worship    were   introduced   as   designs  on 

the  cylinders.     The  ring  is  distinctly  an  amulet  in   Babylonia 

as  elsewhere,  and  hence  it  is  by  no  means  improbable  that  the 

custom  of  carrying  little  inscribed  tablets,  discs,  or  knobs  about 

the  person  as  a  protection   against  mischances  preceded  the 

use  of  such  tablets  as  votive  offerings  to  be  placed  in  a  temple. 

A  very  common  votive  object  in  Babylonia,  especially  in  the 

earlier  period,  was  the  clay  cone.      Such  cones  were  found  in 

large  numbers  at  Lagash,  while  at  Nippur  Peters  came  across 

what  may  be  safely  regarded  as  a  magazine  where  such  cones 

(and  other   votive  objects)  were   manufactured  in  large  num- 

i.4      The  cones  of  Gudea  bear  conventional  inscriptions  of  a 

votive  character  addressed   to   Nin-girsu.      In   other    temples, 

1  Hilprecht.  Old  Babylonian  Inscriptions,  i.  i.  p.  58. 

'-'  In  reality,  glass  colored  with  cobalt.     On  this  production  of  false  lapis  lazuli, 

■'  Nippur,  ii.  [34. 
;  For  examples,  sec  Hilprecht,  ib.,  pi.  18,  no.  34;  pi.  23,  nos.  56,  57;  pi.  25,  nos. 
66,  69  :  pi.  26,  no.  70.  , 

Nippur,  ii.  77,  133. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  673 

other  gods  were  similarly  remembered.  It  has  been  customary 
to  regard  these  cones  as  phallic  symbols ; x  but  it  should  be 
noted  that  not  only  is  the  evidence  for  this  lacking,  but  that 
what  we  know  of  the  popular  practices  of  the  Babylonians  does 
not  warrant  us  in  assuming  any  widespread  phallic  symbolism. 
The  point  of  the  cones  suggests  rather  that  the  objects  were 
intended  to  be  stuck  into  the  ground  or  into  walls.  At  Lagash 
De  Sarzec  found,  besides  cones,  a  large  number  of  copper 
statuettes  '  of  gods  and  goddesses  and  of  animals,  —  chiefly 
bulls,  —  all  terminating  in  a  sharp  point  or  attached  to  a  cone- 
shaped  object.  Others  again  are  clearly  human  figures,  either 
male  personages  holding  the  cone  in  their  hands,3  or  females 
holding  baskets  on  their  heads, —  the  customary  attitude  of 
making  an  offering.  These  curious  statuettes  frequently  bear 
inscriptions  of  a  votive  character,  and  there  can  be  no  doubt 
that  they  were  used  to  be  stuck  into  some  substance.  At  one 
place,  De  Sarzec  found  a  series  set  up  in  concentric  circles4  in 
the  corners  of  an  edifice  and  under  the  floor.  Heuzey  is  of  the 
opinion  that  these  statuettes  thus  arranged  were  to  serve  as  a 
warning  for  the  demons,  but  it- is  more  in  keeping  with  the  gen- 
eral character  of  the  Babylonian  religion  to  look  upon  these 
objects  simply  as  votive  offerings  placed  at  various  parts  of  a 
building  as  a  means  of  securing  the  favor  of  the  gods.  The  cone, 
I  venture  to  think,  is  merely  the  conventionalized  shape  of  a 
votive  object  originally  intended  to  be  stuck  into  some  part  of  a 
sacred  building.  The  large  quantity  of  cones  that  have  been 
found  at  Lagash,  Nippur,  and  elsewhere  is  an  indication  of 
their  popular  use.  It  is  not  improbable  that  at  one  time,  and, 
at  all  events,  in  certain  temples,  the  cones  and  statuettes 
represented  the  common  votive  offerings  with  which  worshippers 

i  So,  e.g.,  Peters'  Nippur,  ii.  2371  2^s-  37^,  379- 

2  De  Sarzec,  Decouvertes  en  Chaldee,  pis.  1  bis  and  28. 

3  The  opinion  has  been  advanced  that  the  personage  who  holds  the  cone-shaped 
object  is  the  fire-god  turning  the  fire  drill,  but  this  is  highly  improbable. 

4  Decouvertes  en  Chaldee,  p.  239. 


(,71  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

provided  themselves  upon  entering  the  sacred  precinct.  To 
facilitate  the  reproduction  of  the  statuettes,  moulds  were  used, 

another  indication  of  the  widespread  use  of  these  objects. 
Clay  figures  of  gods  and  goddesses  were  also  made  in  moulds 
or  modelled  by  hand  and  served  as  votive  offerings.  At 
Nippur,  the  images  represent  chiefly  Bel  and  Belit,1  either 
separately  or  in  combination;  but  figurines  of  Ishtar  have  also 
been  found.'2  In  some  the  goddess  is  represented  as  suckling 
a  child.  Often  she  is  pictured  as  naked,  clasping  her  breasts  or 
her  womb.  The  attitude  which  was  suggested  by  the  character 
of  the  goddess  as  the  promoter  of  fertility  appears  to  have  been 
too  obscene  to  a  more  refined  age,  and,  accordingly,  we  find  in 
later  times  the  sexual  parts  suppressed  or  the  figure  properly 
clothed.  The  character  of  these  figurines  varied  naturally 
with  each  religious  center,  and  even  in  the  same  center  modifi- 
cations were  introduced. 

Whether  these  clay  figurines,  cones,  and  metallic  statuettes 
were  also  placed  by  individuals  in  their  dwellings,  like  the 
"  plague  "  tablets, "  we  cannot  as  yet  definitely  say,  but  it  is 
more  than  likely  that  such  was  the  case.  The  teraphim 
familiar  to  us  from  the  references  in  the  Old  Testament,4  and 
evidently  used  as  talismans,  belong  to  the  class  of  votive  offer- 
ings under  consideration.  The  figurines  and  cones,  and  also 
(though  to  a  smaller  degree)  the  copper  statuettes,  thus  intro- 
duce us  to  the  popular  phases  of  the  cult.  As  symbols  of 
homage  they  appear  to  have  survived  to  a  late  period,  and 
their  use  as  talismans  did  not  materially  affect  their  character 
as  offerings,  made  by  the  people  upon  seeking  the  sanctuaries. 
The  more  costly  objects,  as  vases,5  artistically  worked  weapons, 
handsome  "  seas  "  bowls,  altars,  and   statues  of  the  gods  and 

1  Pettis'  Nippur,  ii.  376.  and  Hilprecht,  Cuneiform  Texts,  ix.  pi.  12. 

PP-  374,  375- 

■   . 

*  E.g.,  <  ien.  xxxi.  hi. 

mm.    1  riptions  \nDecouvertes  m  CAaidee,  p\.  44  and  p.  234. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT. 


675 


other  furniture  for  the  temples  were  left  to  the  rulers.  Such 
offerings  were  made  with  great  pomp.  They  were  formally 
dedicated  by  large  processions  of  priests,  with  the  accompani- 
ment of  hymns  and  music.  The  kings  of  Assyria  presented 
the  captured  gods  as  votive  gifts  pleasing  to  their  deity.1  They 
bring  back  with  them  from  their  campaigns  the  beams  of  the 
edifices  that  they  destroyed  and  offer  them  to  Ishtar.2  Upon 
coming  to  Babylonia,  they  do  not  fail  to  bring  presents  of  gold, 
silver,  precious  stones,  copper,  iron,  purple,  precious  garments,  . 
and  scented  woods  to  Marduk  and  Sarpanitum,  to  Nabu  and 
Tashmitum,  and  the  other  great  gods.3  The  first  fruits  of 
extensive  groves  are  offered  by  Ashurnasirbal  to  Ashur  and  the 
temples  of  his  land.4  The  rulers  of  Assyria  vie  with  the  kings 
of  Babylonia  in  presenting  gardens5  and  lands  to  the  gods  as 
votive  offerings;  but  for  all  that,  in  ancient  Babylonia  and 
Assyria,  as  among  other  peoples  of  antiquity,  the  more  fervent 
religious  spirit  was  manifested  in  the  small  tokens  of  the 
masses,  whose  attachment  to  the  temples  was  of  a  different 
order  from  that  which  prompted  the  rulers  of  the  north  and 
south  to  a  display,  in  which  vanity  and  the  desire  to  manifest 
their  power  play  a  larger  part  as  one  generation  succeeds  the 
other. 

Festivals. 

We  have  seen 6  that  in  the  developed  system  of  the  Baby- 
lonian religion,  every  day  of  the  year  had  some  significance,  and 
that  certain  days  in  each  month  —  so,  e.g.,  the  7th,  14th,  19th, 
21st,  and  28th  — had  a  special  significance.  It  has  also  been 
pointed  out  that  in  different  religious  centers,  the  days  singled 
out  for  special  significance  differed.     In  view  of  this,  we  must 

1  Tiglathpileser  I.  (IR.  12,  col.  iv.  1.  23)  presents  twenty-five  gods  of  the  land  of 
Su<T;.     '  5  \'R.  60,  col.  ii.  11.  11-16. 

2  Ashurnasirbal,  IR.  25,  col.  iii.  11.  91,  92- 

3  Winckler,  Die  Keilschrifttexte  Sargon's  Prunkinschrift,  11.  i4i-»43- 
*  IR.  27,  8-10.  °  See  pp.  273-3^3- 


676  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

be  prepared  to  find  that  the  festival  days  were  not  the  same 
in  all  parts  of  Babylonia,  nor  necessarily  identical  in  the  vari- 
ous periods  of  Babylonian  and  Assyrian  history. 

The  common  name  for  festival  was  isinnu.  If  we  may  judge 
from  the  use  of  assinnu  as  a  general  name  for  priest,1  —  a 
servant  of  a  deity,  —  the  underlying  stem  appears  to  signify 
simply  '  to  serve.'  Another  name  that  reveals  more  as  to  the 
character  of  the  Babylonian  festivals  is  tashiltu,  which  is  used 
as  a  synonym  for  'joy,  delight.'  The  festivals  were  indeed 
joyous  occasions,  marked  by  abundance  of  offerings  and  merry- 
making, though,  as  we  shall  see,  the  somber  note  in  the  rejoic- 
ings was  not  absent.  The  kings  dedicate  their  temples  and 
palaces  amidst  manifestation  of  rejoicing.  They  pray  that  the 
gods  may  occupy  the  dwellings  prepared  for  them  "  in  joy  and 
jubilance,"  2  and  the  reference  to  festivals  in  the  historical  texts 
are  all  of  such  a  character  as  to  make  us  feel  that  the  Baby- 
lonian could  apppreciate  the  Biblical  injunction  to  "rejoice"3 
in  the  divine  presence,  on  the  occasions  set  apart  as,  in  a 
peculiar  sense,  sacred. 

Defective  as  our  knowledge  of  the  ancient  Babylonian  festi- 
vals still  is,  the  material  at  our  disposal  shows  that  at  a  com- 
paratively early  period,  there  was  one  day  in  the  year  on  which 
a  festival  was  celebrated  in  honor  of  a  god  or  goddess  that 
had  a  more  important  character  than  any  other.  In  the  devel- 
oped zodiacal  system  of  Babylonia  each  month  is  sacred  to  a 
deity.1  This  system  was  perfected  under  the  direct  influence 
of  the  theological  schools  of  Babylonia,  but  so  much  of  it, 
at  all  events,  rests  upon  ancient  traditions  which  assigns  a 
month  to  each  god;  and  since  Marduk  is  not  accorded  the 
fust  place,  but  takes  his  position  in  a  group  of  solar  deities, 

1  See  above,  p.  65S. 

-  I  hi>  is  a  standing  phrase  in  the  inscriptions  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  as  well  as  of 
other  kings.    See  Delitzsch,  Assyr.  Handwbrterbuch,  p.  270b. 
I  >ut.  xii.  1S:  xvi.  14,  etc. 
1  See  pp.  \(,2,  463. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT. 


677 


and  since,  moreover,  these  solar  deities  have  a  position  in  the 
calendar  which  accords  with  their  specific  solar  character,1  we 
may  proceed  a  step  further  and  assume  with  some  confidence 
that  the  Babylonian  scholars  were  guided  —  in  large  part,  at 
least  —  by  ancient  traditions  in  parceling  out  the  months  as 
they  did.  Anu,  Bel,  and  Ea,  it  is  true,  may  have  been  assigned 
to  the  first  three  months  because  of  the  preeminent  position  of 
these  three  gods  as  a  special  triad ;  but  even  here  the  antiquity 
of  the  triad  furnishes  a  guarantee  that  the  association  of  some 
month  with  some  deity  belongs  to  a  very  ancient  period  of 
Babylonian  history.  This  being  the  case,  it  would  be  natural 
that  the  first  day  of  the  month  sacred  to  a  deity  would  be 
regarded  as  his  or  her  festival  par  excellence,  and  in  the  case 
of  the  cult  of  a  deity  spreading  beyond  its  original  limits,  this 
festival  would  assume  a  more  general  character.  On  this  day 
the  people  would  come  from  all  parts  of  the  district  within 
which  the  cult  was  carried  on,  to  pay  their  homage  to  the  god 
or  goddess.  In  the  days  of  Gudea,  we  find  Bau  occupying  this 
superior  rank.  Her  festival  had  assumed  such  importance  as 
to  serve  for  reckoning  the  commencement  of  the  year. 

Hence  it  became  known  simply  as  the  day  of  zag-muku,2  that 
is,  the  New  Year's  Day.3  Whether  this  festival  of  Bau  was 
recognized  as  the  New  Year's  Day  throughout  Babylonia,  we 
do  not  know,  but  it  must  have  been  observed  in  a  consider- 
ably extensive  district,  or  Gudea  would  have  made  the  attempt 
to  give  some  festival  connected  with  his  favorite  deity  Nin- 
girsu  this  character.  As  it  is,  he  can  only  combine  Bau's 
festival  with  the  cult  of  Nin-girsu,  by  making  the  New  Year's 
Day  the  occasion  of  a  symbolical  marriage  between  the  god 
and  the  goddess.     Nin-girsu  is  represented  as  offering  marriage 


1  See  ib.  s  resh  shatti.     See  p.  68 1. 

2  Or  zag-mu.  Gudea,  Inscription  G,  col.  iii.  In  the  later  inscriptions  we  find 
zag-mu-ku.  The  k  or  kit  appears  to  be  an  afformative.  See  Amiaud,  Zeits.  f. 
Assyr.  iii.  41.     The  reading  za-am-niu-ku  is  found,  IK.  67,  col.  i.  1.  34. 


i,7S  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION 

gifts  to  Bau,1  on  the  Zagmuku.  How  early  Bau  came  to  occupy 
so  significant  a  rank  has  not  been  ascertained.  It  is  her 
quality  as  the  '  great  mother,'  as  the  goddess  of  fertility  and 
abundance,2  rather  than  any  political  supremacy  of  the  district 
in  which  she  was  worshipped,  that  constitutes  the  chief  factor 
in  giving  Bau  this  preeminence,  just  as  we  have  found  in 
the  case  of  the  other  great  goddesses  of  Babylonia, — Nina, 
N ana,  Ishtar,  -  specific  traits  and  not  political  importance 
lending  them  the  significance  they  acquired. 

At  one  time  we  may  well  suppose  that  the  festival  of  En-lil 
at  Nippur,  which  brought  worshippers  from  all  parts  of  Baby- 
lonia, was  recognized  as  a  '  New  Year's  Day,'  and  we  may 
some  day  find  evidence  that  at  a  still  earlier  period  the  first 
day  of  a  month  sacred  to  some  other  god,  —  Sin  or  Shamash 
or  Nana-Ishtar  of  Krech, — was  recognized  in  some  districts 
as  the  starting-point  for  the  year ;  but  to  an  agricultural  com- 
munity, the  spring,  when  the  seeds  are  sown,  or  the  fall,  after 
the  harvest  has  been  gathered,  are  the  two  most  natural  periods 
for  reckoning  the  beginning  of  the  year.  Since  we  know  that 
at  the  time  when  Babylon  acquired  her  supremacy  the  year 
began  in  the  spring,  the  conservatism  attaching  to  religious 
observances  makes  it  more  than  probable  that  Bau's  festival 
also  fell  in  the  spring. 

After  the  ancient  religious  and  political  centers  of  the  south 
yielded  their  privileges  to  Babylon,  it  was  natural  for  the 
priests  of  Marduk  to  covet  the  honor  of  the  New  Year's  festival 
for  the  new  head  of  the  pantheon.  Accordingly,  we  find  the 
Zagmuku  transformed  into  a  Marduk  festival.  That  it  did  not 
originally  belong  to  Marduk  follows  from  the  fact  that  it  was 
celebrated  in  the  month  of  Nisan,  —  the  first  month.  —  whereas 
the  month  sacred  to  Marduk  was  Arakh-shamna  (or  Marche- 
shwan),  -    the  eighth  month.      The  deliberate  transfer  of  the 

1  Inscription  G,  //'..  ami  Inscription  I),  col.  ii.  11.  1-9.     See  also  p.  59. 
l-  above,  ill. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT. 


679 


Zagmuku  to  Marduk  is  also  indicated  by  the  fact  that  the 
festival  of  Nisan  has  another  name  by  which  it  is  more  com- 
monly designated, —  Akitu.1  The  name  seems  to  have  been 
originally  a  general  term  for  a  ^festival,  and  it  is  natural  that 
Marduk's  festival  should  have  come  to  be  known  as  the  fes- 
tival, just  as  among  the  Hebrews  the  annual  fall  pilgrimage  to 
the  sanctuary  at  Jerusalem  became  known  as  the  Hag,  —  the 
pilgrimage  par  excellence.  To  distinguish  it  from  other  festivals, 
Marduk's  festival  is  sometimes  spoken  of  as  the  "  great "  or 
the  "  lofty  "  Akitu.  The  first  day  was  properly  the  Zagmuku, 
whereas  the  Akitu  itself  extended  at  least  over  the  first  eleven 
days  of  Nisan2  and  may  indeed  have  lasted  the  entire  month; 
but  Zagmuku  was  also  used  for  the  festival  period.  The  New 
Year's  Day  was  marked  by  a  solemn  procession.  The  union 
of  Nabu  and  Marduk  was  symbolized  by  a  visit  which  the 
former  paid  to  his  father,  the  chief  of  the  Babylonian  pantheon. 
In  his  ship,  magnificently  fitted  out,3  Nabu  was  carried  along 
the  street  known  as  Ai-ibur-shabu,4  leading  from  Borsippa 
across  the  Euphrates  to  Babylon. 

The  street  was  handsomely  paved,5  and  everything  was  done 
to  heighten  the  impressiveness  of  the  ceremony.  The  visit  of 
Nabu  marked  the  homage  of  the  gods  to  Marduk ;  and  Nabu 
set  the  example  for  other  gods,  who  were  all  supposed  to 
assemble  in  E-Sagila  during  the  great  festival.  We  have 
already  pointed  out  that  the  cult  of  Nabu  at  Borsippa  at  one 
time  was  regarded  with  greater  sanctity  than  the  Marduk  wor- 
ship in  Babylon.  As  a  concession  to  the  former  supremacy 
of  Nabu,  the  priests  of  E-Sagila,  carrying  the  statue  of  Marduk, 
escorted  Nabu  back  to  Borsippa.  The  return  visit  raises  the 
suspicion  that  it  was  originally  Marduk  who  was  obliged  to 
pay  an   annual  homage  to   Nabu. 

1  See,  e.g.,  Pognon  Wadi  Brissa,  col.  ix.  11.  12-1S. 

2  This  follows  from  a  passage  in  Nebuchadnezzar's  Inscription,  IR.  54,  col.  ii.  1.  57. 

3  See  p.  654.  4  Signifying  '  may  the  enemy  not  wax  strong.' 
5  See  Nebuchadnezzar's  Inscription,  IR.  56,  col.  v.  11.  38-54. 


BAB  YLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

However  this  may  be,  the  double  ceremony  became  to  such 
an  extent  the  noteworthy  feature  of  the  Zagmuku  or  Akitu  that 
when  the  chroniclers  wish  to  indicate  that,  because  of  political 
disturbances,  the  festival  was  not  celebrated,  they  use  the  simple 

formula : 

Nairn  did  not  come  to  Babylon. 

Bel  |  i.e.,  Marduk]  did  not  march  out.1 

The  Akitu  festival  brought  worshippers  from  all  parts  of 
Babylonia  and  Assyria  to  the  capitol.  Kings  and  subjects 
alike  paid  their  devotions  to  Marduk.  The  former  approached 
the  divine  presence  directly,  and,  seizing  hold  of  the  hands  of 
M  irduk's  statue,  were  admitted  into  a  kind  of  covenant  with 
the  god.  The  ceremony  became  the  formal  rite  of  royal  instal- 
lation in  Babylonia.  '  To  seize  the  hands  of  Bel  "  was  equiva- 
lent to  legitimizing  one's  claim  to  the  throne  of  Babylonia,  and 
the  chroniclers  of  the  south  consistently  decline  to  recognize 
Assyrian  rulers  as  kings  of  Babylonia  until  they  have  come  to 
Babylon  and  "seized  the  hands  of  Bel."2  That  this  ceremony 
was  annually  performed  by  the  kings  of  Babylonia  after  the 
union  of  the  southern  states  is  quite  certain.  It  marked  a 
renewal  of  the  pledge  between  the  king  and  his  god.  The 
Assyrian  kings,  however,  contented  themselves  with  a  single 
visit.  Of  Tiglathpileser  II.3  and  Sargon,4  we  know  that  they 
came  to  Babylonia  for  the  purpose  of  performing  the  old  cere- 
mony;  and  others  did  the  same. 

The   eighth   and  eleventh   days  of   the  festival   month  were 

1  So,  e.g.,  during  the  closing  years  of  Nabonnedos'  reign.  Winckler,  Unter- 
suchungen  zur  Altorient.  Gesch.  i.  154  ;  obv.  6  ("th  year);  11  (9th  year);  20  (10th 
year)  ;  24  (|  ith  year). 

<•'    the  meaning  and  importance  of  the  rite,  see  Winckler,  '/.cits.  f.  Assyr.  ii. 
302~y  I  imask-skumukin,  pp.  44-53. 

I  i"  "'  hi  List.  UK.  52,  no.  1  obv.  45. 
*  Wim  Keilschrifttexte   Sargon's,  pp.  52,   124;   of    Ashurbanabal,   the 

chroi  us  that  he  proceeded  to  Babylonia  in  the  month  of  Iw.n.  but,  this  not 

g  the  proper  month,  he  did  not  "seize  the  hands  of  Bel."     See  also  Winckler, 
wxvi,  note. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT.  681 

invested  with  special  sanctity.  On  these  days  all  the  gods 
were  brought  together  in  the  "  chamber  of  fates  "  of  Marduk's 
temple.  In  symbolical  imitation  of  the  assembly  of  the  gods 
in  Ubshu-kenna,1  Marduk  sits  on  his  throne  and  the  gods 
are  represented  as  standing  in  humble  submission  before  him, 
while  he  decrees  the  fates  of  mankind  for  the  coming  year. 
The  Zagmuku  festival  in  its  developed  form  has  striking  points 
of  resemblance  to  the  Jewish  New  Year's  Day.  On  this  day, 
according  to  the  popular  Jewish  tradition,  God  sits  in  judgment 
with  a  book  before  Him  in  which  He  inscribes  the  fate  of  man- 
kind. Nine  days  of  probation  are  allowed,  and  on  the  tenth 
day  —  the  Day  of  Atonement -- the  fates  are  sealed.  The 
Jewish  New  Year  is  known  as  Rosh-hash-shana,2  which  is  an 
exact  equivalent  of  the  Babylonian  resh  s/iatti  (or  zag-muku). 
A  difference,  however,  between  the  Babylonian  and  the  Jewish 
festival  is  that  the  latter  is  celebrated  in  the  seventh  month. 
It  is  not  correct,  therefore,  to  assume  that  the  Hebrews  bor- 
rowed their  Rosh-hash-shana  from  the  Babylonians.  Even  after 
they  adopted  the  Babylonian  calendar,3  they  continued  to  regard 
the  seventh  month  —  the  harvest  month  —  as  the  beginning  of 
the  year.  That  among  the  Babylonians  the  seventh  month 
also  had  a  sacred  character  may  be  concluded  from  the  mean- 
ing of  the  ideographs  with  which  the  name  is  written.4  The 
question  may,  therefore,  be  raised  whether  at  an  earlier  period 
and  in  some  religious  center — Nippur,  Sippar,  or  perhaps  Ur 
—  the  seventh  month  may  not  have  been  celebrated  as  the 
Zagmuku.  At  all  events,  we  must  for  the  present  assume 
that  the  Hebrews  developed  their  New  Year's  Day,  which  they 
may  have  originally  received  from  Babylonia,  independently  of 
Marduk's  festival,  though,  since  the  Rosh-hash-shana  does  not 
come  into  prominence  among  the  Jews  until  the  period  of  the 

i  See  pp.  423  and  629  seq.  3  See  p.  464. 

2  I.e., '  The  beginning  of  the  year.'     See  on  this  subject  Karppe's  article,  Revue 

Semitique,  ii.  146-151.  4  See  il>.,  note  3. 


682  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

so-called  Babylonian  exile,  the  possibility  of  a  direct  Babylonian 
inlluence  in  the  later  conceptions  connected  with  the  day  can- 
not be  denied.1 

Of  the  other  festivals  of  the  Babylonians  and  Assyrians  but 
few  details  are  known.  Several  references  have  already  been 
made  to  the  Tammuz  festival.2  Originally  a  solar  festival, 
celebrated  in  the  fourth  month  at  the  approach  of  the  summer 
solstice,  it  became  through  the  association  of  ideas  suggested 
by  the  mourning  of  Ishtar  for  her  lost  consort  Tammuz  a  kind 
of  'All  Souls'  Day,'  on  which  the  people  remembered  their 
dead.  Dirges  were  sung  by  the  wailing  women  to  the  accom- 
paniment of  musical  instruments;  offerings  were  made  to  the 
dead,  and  it  is  plausible  to  assume  that  visits  were  paid  to 
the  graves.  The  mourning  was  followed  by  a  festival  of 
rejoicing,  symbolizing  the  return  of  the  solar-god.  The  Tam- 
muz festival  appears  to  have  had  a  strong  hold  upon  the 
misses,  by  reason  of  the  popularity  of  the  Tammuz  myth; 
nor  was  it  limited  to  the  Babylonians.  Among  the  Phoeni- 
cians the  cult  of  Tammuz,  known  by  his  title  Adon  (whence 
Adonis),  was  maintained  to  a  late  period,  and  the  Hebrews, 
likewise,  as  late  as  the  days  of  Ezekiel,3  commemorated  with 
rites  of  mourning  the  lost  Tammuz.  The  calendar  of  the 
fewish  Church  still  marks  the  17th  day  of  Tammuz  as  a  fast, 
and  lloutsma  has  shown4  that  the  association  of  the  day  with 
the  capture  of  Jerusalem  by  the  Romans  represents  merely 
the  attempt  to  give  an  ancient  festival  a  worthier  interpreta- 
tion.      The   day  was   originally  connected   with   the  Tammuz 

'  The  opinion  of  many  scholars  that  the  Rosh-hash-shana  dates  from  the  Baby- 
lonian 1    ile  bei    11  ie  not  referred  to  in  the  Book  of  Deuteronomy  is  open  to  serious 
'ions,     'the  festival  lias  traces  of  antiquity  (like  the   Day  of   Atonement),  and 
1    to  have  been  revived  during  the  captivity,  under  Babylonian  influence. 
-  See  especially  pp.  484  and  575. 

:;  Ezekiel,  viii.  14.  There  is  probably  a  reference  also  to  the  Tammuz  festival  in 
Zech.  xii.  to,  ti.  The  interpretation  offered  by  Robertson  Smith  {Religion  of  the 
Semilei   p.    i       note)  foi  thi   mourning  rites  appears  strained. 

I  astendagen  (Amsterdam.  1897,  pp.  4-6;   12-17). 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT. 


683 


cult.  Eerdmans  l  has  recently  endeavored  to  show  that  the 
festival  of  Hosein,  celebrated  by  the  Shiitic  sect  of  Moham- 
medanism in  memory  of  the  tragic  death  of  the  son  of  Ali,  is  in 
reality  a  survival  of  the  Babylonian-Phoenician  Tammuz  festival. 
The  spread  of  the  Tammuz-Adonis  myth  and  cult  to  the  Greeks 2 
is  but  another  indication  of  the  popularity  of  this  ancient 
Semitic  festival. 

The  old  Zagmuku  festival  in  honor  of  Bau  and  the  Tammuz 
festival,  celebrated  in  spring  and  summer,  respectively,  are 
also  closely  associated  with  agricultural  life.  The  spring  as 
the  seedtime  is,  as  we  have  seen,  a  natural  period  for  begin- 
ning the  calculation  of  the  New  Year,  while  a  first  harvest  of 
the  wheat  and  barley  is  reaped  in  Babylonia  at  the  time  of  the 
summer  solstice.  We  should  expect,  therefore,  to  find  a  third 
festival  in  the  fall,  at  the  close  of  the  harvest  and  just  before 
the  winter  rains  set  in.  The  seventh  month  -  Tishri  —  was 
a  sacred  month  among  the  ancient  Hebrews  as  well  as  among 
the  Babylonians,  but  up  to  the  present  no  distinct  traces  of 
a  festival  period  in  Tishri  have  been  found  in  Babylonian 
texts.  We  must  content  ourselves,  therefore,  with  the  conjec- 
ture, above  thrown  out, -that  an  Akitu  was  originally  celebrated 
in  this  month  at  some  ancient  religious  center  of  the  Euphrates 
Valley.  Further  publications  of  cuneiform  texts  may  throw 
light  upon  this  point.  The  unpublished  material  in  European 
and  American  museums  harbors  many  surprises. 

In  Ashurbanabal's  annals3  there  is  an  interesting  reference 
to  a  festival  celebrated  in  honor  of  the  goddess  Gula,  the  god- 
dess of  healing,4  on  the  twelfth  day  of  Iyyar,  the  second  month. 
The  festival  is  described  ideographically  as  Si-gar,5  but  from 


i  Zeits.  f.  Assyr.  ix.  290  seq. 

2  See  Farnell,  The  Cults  of  the  Greek  States,  ii.  648  seq. 

3  Rassam  Cylinder,  col.  i.  11.  11,  12. 

4  See  pp.  105  and  1; 


sea 


5  The  readings  Sum-gar  and  Shum-gar  (so  Jensen,  Keils  BiH.iL  155)  are  also 
possible. 


68 1  BAB  J /.OMAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

the  fact  that  the  same  ideographs  are  used  elsewhere  to  de- 
scribe a  day  sacred  to  Sin  and  Shamash,1  it  would  appear  that 
Si  gar  is  not  a  specific  appellation,  but  a  general  name  again 
fur  festival.  This  month  Iyyar  and  this  particular  day,  as  a 
"favorable  one,"  is  chosen  by  Ashurbanabal  for  his  installa- 
tion as  king  of  Assyria.  The  same  month  is  selected  for  a 
formal  pilgrimage  to  babylonia  for  the  purpose  of  restoring 
to  E-Sagila  a  statue  of  Marduk  that  a  previous  Assyrian  king 
I i,u I  taken  from  its  place,"  and  Lehmann  is  probably  correct  in 
concluding3  that  this  month  of  Iyyar  was  a  particularly  sacred 
mi.  in  Assyria,  emphasized  with  intent  perhaps  by  the  kings, 
as  an  offset  against  the  sacredness  of  Nisan  in  Babylonia. 

Festivals  in  honor  of  Ninib  were  celebrated  in  Calah  in  the 
months  of  Elul  —  the  sixth  month  —  and  Shabat  —  the  eleventh 
month.4  The  sixth  month,  it  will  be  recalled,  is  sacred  to 
Ishtar.6  Ninib  being  a  solar  deity,  his  festival  in  Elul  was 
evidently  of  a  solar  character.  From  Ashurbanabal, ,;  again, 
we  learn  that  the  25th  clay  of  Siwan  —  the  third  month  — 
was  sacred  to  Belit  of  Babylon,  and  on  that  day  a  procession 
took  place  in  her  honor.  The  Belit  meant  is  Sarpanitum  in 
her  original  and  independent  role  as  a  goddess  of  fertility. 
The  statue  of  the  goddess,  carried  about,  presumably  in  her 
ship,  formed  the  chief  feature  of  the  procession.  Ashur- 
banabal chooses  this  "  favorable"  day  as  the  one  on  which   to 

1  IVK.  v'.  49b,  where  the  20th  day  of  the  intercalated  Elul  is  so  designated.  An 
official—  'the  great  si  gar'    -is  mentioned  in  a  list,  —  UK.  31,  no.  5,  33a. 

-  See  the  discussion  (and  passages)  in  Lehmann's  Shamash-shumukin,  pp.  43  sea. 

is  tempted  to  conclude  that  Marduk's  statue  was  removed  to  Nineveh,  not  in  a 

spirit  (il   vandalism,  but  in  order  to  enable  Assyrian  kings  to  'seize  the  hands  of 

Bel '  without  proceeding  to  E  Sagila.     The  Babylonians,  no  doubt,  were  offended  by 

such    an    act.  and    in   order  to  conciliate  them,   Ashurbanabal,  who  pursues  a   mild 

towards  the  south,  orders  the  statue  to  be  restored  at  the  time  that  he  appoints 

his  biothei  Shamash-shumukin  as  governor  of  the  southern  provinces. 

:;  lb.  p.  5  ;.  note. 

hurnasirbal's  [nsi  ription,  IK.  23,  col.  ii.  1.  134. 
ibove,  j-i.  46  ■. 
'    Ras  .mi  Cylinder,  col.  viii.  11.  <>(,-ioo. 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT  6S5 

break  up  camp  in  the  course  of  one  of  his  military  expe- 
ditions. We  would  naturally  expect  to  find  a  festival  month 
devoted  to  the  god  Ashur  in  Assyria.  This  month  was  Elul 
—  the  sixth  month.1  The  choice  of  this  month  lends  weight 
to  the  supposition  that  Ashur  was  originally  a  solar  deity.2 
The  honors  once  paid  to  Ninib  in  Calah  in  this  month 
could  thus  easily  be  transferred  to  the  head  of  the  Assyrian 
pantheon.  Although  in  the  calendar  the  sixth  month  is  sacred 
to  Ishtar,  her  festival  was  celebrated  in  the  fifth  month,  known 
as  Ab.n  This  lack  of  correspondence  between  the  calendar 
and  the  festivals  is  an  indication  of  the  greater  antiquity  of  the 
latter. 

In  the  great  temple  to  Shamash  at  Sippar,  there  appear  to 
have  been  several  days  that  were  marked  by  religious  observ- 
ances. Nabubaliddin 4  (ninth  century)  emphasizes  that  he 
presented  rich  garments  to  the  temple  for  use  on  six  days  of 
the  year, —  the  7th  day  of  Nisan  (first  month),  10th  of  Iyyar 
(second  month),  3d  of  Elul  (sixth  month),  7th  of  Tishri  (seventh 
month),  15th  of  Arakh-shamna  (or  Marcheshwan,  eighth  month), 
and  the  15th  of  Adar  (twelfth  month).  These  garments  are 
given  to  Shamash,  to  his  consort  Malkatu,  and  to  Bunene.5  Since 
from  a  passage  in  a  Babylonian  chronicle 6  it  appears  that  it 
was  customary  for  Shamash  on  his  festival  to  leave  his  temple, 
we  may  conclude  that  the  garments  were  put  on  Shamash  and 
his  associates,  for  the  solemn  procession  on  the  six  days  in 

question. 

The  festivals  in  Nisan  and  Elul  are  distinctly  of  a  solar 
character.     The  choice  of  two  other  months  immediately  fol- 

1  George  Smith,  The  History  of  Ashurbanabal,  p.  126  (Cylinder  I!,  col.  v.  1.  77). 
See  also  Rassam  Cylinder,  col.  iii.  1.  32. 

2  See  above,  pp.  19 :;,  196.  „      .       ,r  . 

3  See  Ashurbanabal  Cylinder  B,  col.  v.  1.  x6  (K,  Us  Bibl.  ,1.  248;  also  Me.ssner, 
Bcittd.re  zum  Altbabylonischen  Privatrecht,  no.  14  (p.  23). 

4  VR.  61,  col.  v.  1.  51-vi.  1.  S. 

5  See  above,  pp.  74  and  1 76. 

6  Winckler,  Zcits.f.  Assyr.  ii.  155  (col-  ii-  '•  41)- 


6S6  BABYLONIAN  ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

lowing  Nisan  and  Elul  cannot  be  accidental.  The  interval  of 
thirty-three  days  between  the  Nisan  and  lyyar  festivals  and 
thirty-four  days  between  the  Elul  and  Tishri  festivals  may 
represent  a  sacred  period.1  Tishri,  moreover,  as  has  been 
pointed  out,  is  a  sacred  month  in  a  peculiar  sense.  Marche- 
shwan,  it  may  be  well  to  bear  in  mind,  is  sacred  to  Marduk, — 
a  solar  deity,  —  while  the  15th  of  Adar,  curiously  enough,  is 
an  old  solar  festival  that,  modified  and  connected  with  histori- 
cal reminiscences,  became  popular  among  the  Jews  of  Persia 
and  Babylonia  during  the  Persian  supremacy  in  the  Semitic 
Orient,  and  survives  to  this  day  under  the  name  of  the  Purim 
festival.2  At  all  events,  the  six  days  may  be  safely  regarded 
as  connected  in  some  way,  direct  or  indirect,  with  solar  wor- 
ships, and  it  is  natural  to  find  that  in  so  prominent  a  center 
of  sun-worship  as  Sippar,  all  the  solar  festivals  were  properly 
and  solemnly  observed. 

'  One  is  reminded  of  the  sanctity  attaching  in  the  Jewish  ritual  to  the  "count- 
ing" of  the  seven  weeks  intervening  between  Passover  (the  old  Nisan  festival)  and 
Pentecost  (an  old  summer  festival).  See  Deut.  xvi.  9.  The  33d  day  of  this  period 
has  a  special  significance  in  the  Jewish  Church. 

'-'   The  non-Jewish  origin  of  the  Purim  festival  is  generally  accepted   by  critical 
scholars.    1  agard   (Purim—  E$n  Beitrag  zur  Geschichte der Religions)  endeavors  to 
trace  it  back  to  a  Persian  fire  festival;  Zimmern  (Zeits.f.  Alt.  Wiss.,  [891,  pp.  160 
teq.)  connects  it  with  the   Babylonian  Zagmuku.      Sayce's  supposition  (Proc.  Soc. 
/>'//'/.  Ar.h.  xix.  280,  281)  is  not  to  be  taken   seriously.     The  origin  of  the  Jewish 
and  fast  of  Purim  is  still  obscure.     The  fact  that  there  is  both  a  fast  (14th  Adar) 
and  .1  festival  (15th  Adar)  is  a  safe  indication  of  antiquity.     Zimmern's  view  of  a  pos- 
sible relationship  between  Purim  and  Zagmuku  is  untenable,  but  that  there  is  a  connec- 
tion between   Purim  and  i  une  Babylonian  festival  follows  from  the  fact  that  the  two 
;es in  the  Book  of  Esther-    namely,  Mordecai  and  Esther— bear  names 
identical  with  the  two  Babylonian  deities.  Marduk  and  Ishtar.    This  cannot  bean  acci- 
dent.    On  the  other  hand,  Hainan  and   Vashti.  according  to  Jensen  (Wiener  Zeits. 
/.,/.  Kunde  des  Morgenlandes,\\.  70),  are  Elamitic  names  of  deities  corresponding  to 
the   Babylonian   Marduk  and    Islitar.-     The  case  for  Vashti  is  not  clearly  made  out 
'sen.  hut.  for  all  that,  it  is  certain  that   the    Babylonian  elements  in   the   insti- 

bined   with  some  hits  of    Persian    mythology.       The  historical 

ig   is  the   work   of  the  Jewish  compiler  of  the  tale,  that    lias  of  course   some  liis- 

1  is.     See  „ow  Toy,  Esther  as  <>  Babylonian   Goddess   (Thi    New  World, 
vi.  . 


THE    TEMPLES  AND    THE    CULT. 


687 


It  is  disappointing  that  up  to  the  present  so  little  has  been 
ascertained  of  the  details  of  the  moon-cult  the  great  rival  to 
Shamash  worship  —  in  the  old  cities  of  Ur  and  Harran.  In 
the  Babylonian  calendar,  the  third  month  —  Siwan  —  is  sacred 
to  Sin,  but  since,  as  we  have  found,  the  festivals  in  honor 
of  the  gods  do  not  always  correspond  to  the  assignment  of  the 
months,  we  cannot  be  certain  that  in  this  month  a  special  festival 
in  honor  of  Sin  was  observed.  Lastly,  besides  the  regular  and 
fixed  festivals,  the  kings,  and  more  especially  the  Assyrian  rulers, 
did  not  hesitate  to  institute  special  festivals  in  memory  of  some 
event  that  contributed  to  their  glory.  Agumkakrimi 1  instituted 
a  festival  upon  restoring  the  statues  of  Marduk  and  Sarpanitum 
to  Babylon,  and  Sargon  does  the  same  upon  restoring  the  palace 
at  Calah.2  Dedications  of  temples  and  palaces  were  in  general 
marked  by  festivities,  and  so  when  the  kings  return  in  triumph 
from  their  wars,  laden  with  spoils  and  captives,  popular  rejoic- 
ings were  instituted.  But  such  festivals  were  merely  sporadic, 
and,  while  marked  by  religious  ceremonies,  were  chiefly  occa- 
sions of  general  jollification  combined  with  homage  to  the 
rulers.      Such  a  festival  was  not  called  an  isinnu,  but  a  nigutu? 

a  '  merrymaking.' 4    More  directly  connected  with  the  cult  was 

a  ceremony  observed  in  Assyria  upon  the  installation  of  an 
official,  known  as  the  limmu,  who  during  his  year  of  service 
enjoyed  the  privilege  of  having  official  documents  dated  with 
his  name.5  The  ceremony  involved  a  running"  of  some  kind, 
and  reminds  one  of  the  running  between  the  two  hills  Marwa 
and  Safa  in  Mekka  that  forms  part  of  the  religious  observances 


i  VR.  33,  col.  v.  1.  40. 

2  Winckler,  Die  Keilschrifttexte  Sargon' 's,  p.  172  and  p.  xxvi.  note. 

3  E.g.,  Sargon's  Annals,  1.  179;  Cylinder,  1.  20,  VR.  53,  col.  v.  1.  40  {nigatu). 

^  Not  necessarily  '  music  festival/  as  Delitzsch  propose  (Assyr.  Handw.,  p.  447a)- 

5  For  examples,  see  the  Assyrian  contract  tablets  translated  by  Peiser,  Keils  Blbl. 

iv.  98  and  passim. 

6  See  the  passage  Shalmanaser  obelisk,  11.  174,  >7.v  and   Peiser's  comment,  hah 

Bibl.  iv.  106,  note. 


BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

in  connection  with  a  visit  to  the  Kaaba.1  The  name  of  the 
ceremony  appears  to  have  been  puru  (or  bum).  To  connect 
this  word  with  the  Jewish  festival  of  Purim,  as  Sayce  proposes,2 
is  wholly  unwarranted.  The  character  of  the  Puru  ceremony 
points  to  its  being  an  ancient  custom,  the  real  significance  of 
which  in  the  course  of  time  became  lost.  Fast  days  instituted 
for  periods  of  distress  might  also  be  added  to  the  cult,  but 
these,  too,  like  the  special  festivals,  were  not  permanent  insti- 
tutions. For  such  occasions  many  of  the  penitential  psalms 
which  were  discussed  in  a  previous  chapter3  were  composed. 
To  conciliate  angered  gods  whose  temples  had  been  devastated 
in  days  of  turmoil,  atonement  and  purification  rites  were  ob- 
served. So  Ashurbanabal  *  upon  his  concpiest  of  Babylonian 
cities  tells  us  that  he  pacified  the  gods  of  the  south  with  peni- 
tential psalms  and  purified  the  temples  by  magic  rites;  and 
Nabubaliddin,5  incidental  to  his  restoration  of  the  Shamash 
cult  at  Sippar,  refers  to  an  interesting  ceremony  of  purification, 
which  consisted  in  his  taking  water  and  washing  his  mouth 
according  to  the  purification  ritual  of  Ea  and  Marduk,6  pre- 
liminary to  bringing  sacrifices  to  Shamash  in  his  shrine.  Sippar 
had  been  overrun  by  nomads,7  the  temple  had  been  defiled, 
and  before  sacrifices  could  again  be  offered,  the  sacred  edifice 
and  sacred  quarter  had  to  be  purified.  The  king's  action  was 
a  symbol  of  this  purification.  Many  such  customs  must  have 
been  in  vogue  in  Babylonia  and  Assyria.  Some  —  and  these 
were  the  oldest — were  of  popular  origin.  On  the  seal  cylinders 
there   is  frequently  represented  a  pole  or  a  conventionalized 

1  Burton,  .  I  Pilgrimage  to  Met  i  a  and  Medina,  Hi.  chapter  vii. 
-  5  p.  686. 

hapter  xviii. 

•'   RaSSam  Cyl  1.  iv.  11.  S6-S9. 

col.  ii.  11.  22-27. 
I    .  and    Marduk,  it  will  be  recalled,  are  the  chief  gods  invoked  in  magic  rites 
involving  purification.     See  pp.  275,  2711. 
146. 


THE    TEMPLES  A. YD    THE    CULT.  689 

form  of  a  tree,  generally  in  connection  with  a  design  illustrat- 
ing the  worship  of  a  deity.1  This  symbol  is  clearly  a  survival 
of  some  tree  worship  2  that  was  once  popular.  The  compari- 
son with  the  ashera  or  pole  worship  among  Phoenicians  and 
Hebrews3  is  fully  justified,  and  is  a  proof  of  the  great  an- 
tiquity of  the  symbol,  which,  without  becoming  a  formal 
part  of  the  later  cult,  retained  in  some  measure  a  hold  upon 
the  popular  mind.  Other  symbols  and  customs  were  intro- 
duced under  the  influence  of  the  doctrines  unfolded  in  the 
schools  of  thought  in  the  various  intellectual  centers,  and  as 
an  expression  of  the  teachings  of  the  priests.  The  cult  of 
Babylonia,  even  more  so  than  the  literature,  is  a  compound 
of  these  two  factors,  —  popular  beliefs  and  the  theological  elab- 
oration and  systematization  of  these  beliefs.  '  In  the  course 
of  this  elaboration,  many  new  ideas  and  new  rites  were  intro- 
duced. The  official  cult  passed  in  some  important  particulars 
far  beyond  popular  practices. 

1  See  numerous  examples  in  Menant's  Collection  de  Clercq  (Paris,  iSSS). 

2  See  above,  p.  662. 

3  Stade,  Geschichte  des  Volkcs  Israel,  i.  458  scq. 


CHAPTER   XXVII. 

CONCLUSION. 
General  Estimate  and  Influence. 

In  forming  a  general  estimate  of  a  religion,  one's  verdict 
will  largely  depend  upon  the  point  of  view  from  which  the 
religion  in  question  is  regarded.  It  is  manifestly  unjust  and 
illogical  to  apply  modern  standards  to  an  ancient  religion,  not 
that  such  a  religion  would  necessarily  suffer  by  the  comparison 
involved,  but  because  of  the  totally  different  conditions  under 
which  religion  developed  in  antiquity  from  those  prevailing  in 
modern  times.  The  close  association,  nay,  the  inseparable 
bond,  between  religion  and  the  state  is  only  one  of  several 
determining  factors  that  might  be  adduced,  while  the  small 
scop;'  permitted  to  individualism  in  matters  of  religious  belief 
and  practice  in  a  country  like  Babylonia  or  Assyria  was  fraught 
with  such  peculiar  results  that  all  comparisons,  even  with  other 
religions  of  antiquity,  could  only  obscure  and  not  illumine  our 
judgment. 

There  are  manifestly  three  phases  of  the  religion  of  Baby- 
lonia and  Assyria  that  need  to  be  considered  in  reaching  some 
general  conclusions  as  to  the  character  and  rank  to  be  accorded 
to  it,  the  doctrines,  t he  rites,  and  the  ethics.  So  far  as  the 
pantheon  is  concerned,  the  limitations  in  the  development  of 
doctrines  connected  with  it  were  reached  when  the  union  of 
i In-  several  Euphratean  states  was  permanently  effected  under 
1  lammurabi.  Marduk,  a  solar  deity,  takes  his  place  as  the  head 
<>f  the  pantheon  by  virtue  of  the  preeminent  place  occupied  by 
his  patron  city,-     Babylon.     The  other  great  gods,  each  repre- 


CONCLUSION.  691 

senting  some  religious  center  that  at  one  time  or  the  other 
rose  to  importance,  grouped  themselves  around  Marduk,  as 
the  princes  and  nobles  gather  around  a  supreme  monarch.  A 
certain  measure  of  independence  was  reserved  for  the  great 
mother  goddess  Ishtar,  who,  worshipped  under  various  names 
as  the  symbol  of  fertility,  plenty,  and  strength,  is  not  so 
decidedly  affected  by  the  change  as  deities  like  En-lil,  Shamash, 
Sin,  and  Ea,  who  could  at  any  time  become  rivals  of  Marduk. 
As  the  position  of  Marduk,  however,  became  more  and  more 
assured  without  danger  of  being  shaken,  the  feeling  of  rivalry 
in  his  relations  to  the  other  gods  began  to  disappear.  Marduk's 
supremacy  no  longer  being  questioned,  there  was  no  necessity 
to  curtail  the  homage  paid  to  Shamash  at  Sippar  or  to  En-lil 
at  Nippur ;  hence  the  religious  importance  of  the  old  centers 
is  not  diminished  by  the  surpassing  glory  of  Babylon.  There 
was  room  for  all.  Marduk's  toleration  is  the  best  evidence 
of  his  unquestioned  headship. 

The  centralization  of  political  power  and  of  religious  suprem- 
acy is  concomitant  with  the  focussing  of  intellectual  life  in 
Babylon.  The  priests  of  Marduk  set  the  fashion  in  theo- 
logical thought.  So  far  as  possible,  the  ancient  traditions 
and  myths  were  reshaped  so  as  to  contribute  to  the  glory  of 
Marduk.  The  chief  part  in  the  work  of  creation  is  assigned 
to  him.  The  storm-god  En-lil  is  set  aside  to  make  room  for 
the  solar  deity  Marduk.  But,  despite  such  efforts,  the  old  tales, 
once  committed  to  writing  on  the  practically  imperishable  clay, 
survived,  if  not  in  the  minds  of  the  people,  at  least  in  the 
archives  of  the  ancient  temples. 

The  antiquity  of  literature  in  Babylonia  was  the  factor  that 
prevented  the  cult  from  acquiring  a  uniform  character  in  the 
various  parts  of  the  empire.  The  priests  of  Nippur,  of  Sippar, 
of  Eridu,  of  Erech,  Cuthah,  Ur,  and  other  places  began  long 
before  the  period  of  Hammurabi  to  compile,  on  the  basis  of 
past  experience  and  as  a  guide  for  future  needs,  omen  lists, 


692  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN   RELIGION. 

incantation  formulas,  and  sacrificial  rituals.  These  collections 
created  orthodox  standards,  and  these  standards,  once  acknowl- 
edged,  the  natural  conservatism  attaching  to  religious  customs 
was  sufficient  to  maintain  their  continuance.  The  uniform- 
ity of  doctrine  was  thus  offset  by  variations  in  the  cult; 
and  the  policy  adopted  by  both  Babylonian  and  Assyrian  rulers, 
in  permitting  each  center  to  remain  undisturbed,  and  in  freely 
recognizing  the  religious  independence  of  each,  prevented  the 
Babylonian  and  Assyrian  religion  from  falling  into  the  state  of 
stagnation  which  would  otherwise  have  been  its  fate. 

In  the  views  taken  of  the  relationship  between  the  gods  and 
men,  no  notable  advances  were  made  when  once  the  ethical 
spirit  was  infused  into  the  religious  beliefs.  The  problem  of 
good  and  evil  was  solved  in  a  simple  fashion.  By  the  side  of 
the  great  gods  there*  existed  a  large,  almost  infinite  number 
of  spirits  and  demons,  who  were  generally  held  responsible  for 
the  evils  affecting  mankind.1  These  demons  and  spirits  were 
in  many  cases  gods  'fallen  from  grace,'  —  minor  local  deities 
who,  unable  to  maintain  themselves  in  the  face  of  the  growing 
popularity  of  the  great  gods,  sank  to  an  inferior  position  as 
messengers,  forced  to  do  the  will  of  their  masters  and  who 
could  be  controlled  by  the  latter.  But  the  intercession  of  the 
priests  was  essential  to  obtaining  divine  help  against  the 
mischievous  workings  of  the  spirits.  Even  the  kings,  though 
originally  standing  very  close  to  the  gods,  could  not  dispense 
with  the  services  of  the  priests,  and  by  virtue  of  their  conspicu- 
ous position  had  to  exercise  greater  precautions  than  the 
masses  not  to  offend  the  gods,  by  errors  of  commission  or 
omission  in  the  cult.  The  priests  held  the  secret  that  could 
secure  freedom  from  ills  and  promote  the  comparative  well- 
being  of  rulers  and  subjects.  They  alone  knew  what  incanta- 
tions to  use  for  each  case  that  was  brought  before  them,  in 
what    way  the  sacrifices  were  to  be  brought,  when   the  deity 

1  See  above,  pp.  1S3,  266. 


CONCLUSION.  693 

should  be  approached,  and  why  divine  anger  had  manifested 
itself.  The  intellectual  leadership  thus  acquired  by  the  priests, 
in  addition  to  their  control  of  religious  affairs,  was  an  additional 
factor  in  maintaining  orthodox  standards  of  belief  when  once 
they  had  become  fixed.  In  the  doctrines  of  life  after  death, 
this  influence  of  the  priesthood  is  distinctly  seen.  The  popular 
notions  were  systematized,  but  the  priests,  true  to  their  rule  as 
conservators,  did  not  pass  beyond  primitive  conceptions.  Some 
weak  attempts  at  a  philosophical  view  of  the  problem  of  death 
are  attempted  in  the  Cxilgamesh  epic  as  finally  put  together 
under  the  influence  of  the  Babylonian  schools  of  thought,1  but 
the  leaders  shared  with  the  people  the  sense  of  hopelessness 
when  picturing  the  life  in  the  great  hollow  Aralii.  It  is  in  the 
hymns  and  prayers,  rather  than  in  the  cosmology  and  eschatol- 
ogy,  that  the  spiritual  aspirations  of  the  priests  (and  to  a 
limited  degree  of  the  masses)  manifest  themselves.  In  these 
productions,  whether  existing  independently  or  incorporated 
into  incantation  rituals,  we  see  the  religion  of  Babylonia  at  its 
best.  A  strong  emphasis  is  placed  upon  the  doctrine  that 
misfortunes  and  ills  come  as  a  punishment  for  sins  of  com- 
mission or  omission.  It  is  true  that  no  distinction  is  drawn 
between  ceremonial  errors  and  real  misdeeds,  but  the  sense  of 
guilt  is  aroused  by  the  priests  in  the  minds  of  those  who  come 
to  the  temples,  seeking  relief  from  the  attacks  of  the  evil  spirits 
or  the  bewitchment  of  sorcerers. 

It  is  in  this  doctrine  of  guilt,  as  revealed  through  the  magi- 
cal texts,  that  we  must  seek  both  for  the  starting-point  of  the 
development  of  an  ethical  system  (so  far  as  such  a  system 
existed  among  the  Babylonians),  and  also  for  the  limitations 
of  this  system.  The  aim  of  the  priests  to  observe  the  right 
ceremonies,  to  pronounce  the  right  words  in  order  to  accom- 
plish their  aim,  reacted  on  rulers  and  subjects,  and  led  them  to 
make  the  pleasure  of  the  gods  the  goal  of  life.     With  fear  of 

1  See  pp.  513  seq. 


694  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

the  gods,  upon  which  stress  is  always  laid,1  there  is  thus  asso- 
ciated an  equally  strong  love 2  of  the  divine  powers.  Obedi- 
ence to  the  gods  is  primarily  inculcated  as  a  means  of  securing 
their  protection  and  blessing  ;  but  the  fear  of  the  gods,  we  are 
told,  is  the  cause  of  joy;3  and  the  Babylonians  passed  far 
beyond  the  stage  of  making  the  satisfaction  of  one's  own 
desires  the  standard  of  right  and  wrong.  A  penitential  psalm 
declares4  that  what  is  pleasing  to  oneself  may  be  sinful  in  the 
eyes  of  a  god. 

The  kings  pride  themselves  upon  being  the  promoters  of 
justice.  Even  the  Assyrian  rulers,  who  impress  one  while  con- 
ducting their  wars  as  bereft  of  all  softer  emotions,  declare  that 
their  highest  aim  is  to  spread  plenty  and  happiness.5  Senna- 
cherib calls  himself  a  king  who  Moves  righteousness,'6  and  he, 
as  well  as  his  predecessors  and  successors,  busies  himself  with 
actually  restoring  the  rights  of  those  of  his  subjects  who  have 
been  wrongfully  deprived  of  their  possessions. 

The  standard  of  private  morality  was  high  both  in  Babylonia 
and  Assyria.  The  legal  and  commercial  tablets  reveal  that 
proper  consideration  was  given  to  the  treatment  of  woman  — 
a  most  satisfactory  index  of  ethical  conditions.7  She  could 
hold  property  and  dispose  of  it.  Before  the  courts,  her  status 
did  not  differ  materially  from  that  of  the  male  population.  The 
husband  could  not  divorce  his  wife  without  sufficient  cause,  and 
children  owed  obedience  to  the  mother  as  well  as  to  the  father.8 

1  Babylonian  and  Assyrian  kings  alike  speak  constantly  of  their  fear  of  the  gods. 
See  the  passages  in  Delitzsch's  Assyrisches  Handworterbuch,  pp.  526,  527,  to  which 
many  more  could  be  added. 

2  See,  e.g.,  Nebuchadnezzar,  IR.  53,  col.  i.  1.  31. 

*  IV R.  60*  B  obv.  25.  t  IVR.  60*  C  obv.  14. 

e  So  Sargon  cylinder,  11.  34-42. 

'IK.  57,  col.  i.  1.  4. 

7  See  the  writer's  remarks  in  Oriental  Studies  of  the  Oriental  Club  of  Philadel- 
phia, pp.  119-121. 

See  the  so-called  family  laws  (as  early  as  the  days  of  Hammurabi)  in  Meissner's 
Beitr'dge  zum  Altbabylonischen  Privatrecht,  p.  15,  where  the  punishment  in  the 
case  of  the  son  who  casts  aside  His  mother  is  specifically  referred  to. 


CONCLUSION. 


695 


Polygamy,  as  a  matter  of  course,  prevailed,  but  it  is  an  error  to 
suppose  that  polygamy  is  inconsistent  with  high  ideals  of  family 
life,  even  though  it  does  not  lead  to  the  highest  ideals. 

Hatred,  lying,  cheating,  using  false  measures,  removing 
boundaries,  adultery,  insincerity  are  denounced  in  the  incanta- 
tion texts,1  and  in  accord  with  this  standard,  we  see  in  the 
recordsuits  of  lawsuits  and  agreements  between  parties  2  clear 
indications  of  the  stringent  laws  that  prevailed  in  order  to 
protect  citizens  against  infringement  of  their  rights.  It  comes 
as  a  surprise,  but  also  as  a  welcome  testimony  to  the  efficacy 
of  justice  in  Assyria,  to  find  Ashurbanabal  emphasizing  the 
fact  that  he  established  ordinances  so  that  the  strong  should 
do  no  harm  to  the  weak.3 

The  institution  of  slavery  flourished  in  Babylonia  and  Assy- 
ria throughout  all  periods  of  their  history,4  but  there  were 
various  grades  of  slaves.  Some  classes  differed  but  little  from 
that  of  servants,  indentured  for  a  longer  or  shorter  period  for 
certain  services.  The  temple  slaves  appear  to  have  largely 
belonged  to  this  class.  Mild  treatment  of  slaves  is  enjoined 
and  was  the  rule.  The  slaves  are  often  the  confidential  agents 
of  their  masters  who  attend  to  the  business  affairs  of  the  latter. 
We  find  slaves  holding  property  in  their  own  right.  Con- 
tracts entered  into  by  them  are  legal  and  binding.  Injuries 
inflicted  upon  them  by  their  masters  are  punished,  and  they  are 
protected  against  losses  and  mishaps  encountered  while  in  ser- 
vice. While  we  have  no  evidence  to  show  that  the  laws  of 
Assyria  were  on  a  lower  ethical  plane  than  those  of  Babylonia, 
still,  as  the  pupils  and  imitators  of  the  Babylonians  in  almost 
everything  pertaining  to  culture  and  religion,  the  general  tone 
of  life  in  Assyria  was  hardly  as  high  as  in  the  south.     The  war- 

1  See,  e.g.,  p.  291. 

2  See   the   admirable   discussions   on    Babylonian  jurisprudence  in   kohler  and 
Peiser's  Aus  dcm  Babylonischen  Rechtsleben  (parts  i.-iii.,  Leipzig,  1S00-97). 

3  S.  A.  Strong-  in  Journal  of  the  Royal  Asiatic  Society,  1891,  p.  46°- 

4  See  on  this  subject  Meissner,  Dc  Scrvitutc  Babylonico-Assyriat  0,  pp.  3,  4, 4°~49- 


696  BABYLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

like  spirit  of  the  rulers  is  but  a  symptom  of  the  fiercer  charac- 
ter of  the  people. 

The  tendency  towards  monotheism  in  the  religion  of  Baby* 
Ionia  and  Assyria  has  been  referred  to.  We  must  remember 
that  it  was  only  a  tendency.  No  decided  steps  in  this  direc- 
tion were  ever  taken.  Both  in  the  south  and  in  the  north,  this 
tendency  is  but  the  expression  of  the  preeminent  rank  accorded 
to  Marduk  and  Ashur,  respectively.  The  independent  exist- 
ence of  two  heads  in  the  combined  pantheon  was  sufficient  to 
prevent  the  infusion  of  an  ethical  spirit  into  this  monotheistic 
tendency ;  and  unless  a  monotheistic  conception  of  the  uni- 
verse is  interpreted  in  an  ethical  sense,  monotheism  (or  monol- 
atry)  has  no  great  superiority,  either  religiously  or  philosophi- 
cally, over  polytheism. 

From  the  standpoint  of  religious  doctrine,  accordingly,  the 
religion  of  Babylonia  and  Assyria  does  not  occupy  a  unique 
position.  In  this  respect,  the  Egyptian  religion  reaches  a 
higher  level.  For  all  that,  the  influence  exerted  by  the  reli- 
gion that  developed  in  the  Euphrates  Valley  was  profound  and 
lasting.  We  have  had  occasion  in  various  chapters  of  this 
work  to  point  out  the  close  analogies  existing  between  the 
thoughts,  tradition,  and  practices  of  the  Hebrews  and  the  Baby- 
lonians.1 A  proper  study  of  the  Hebrew  religion  is  closely 
bound  up  with  an  investigation  of  the  religious  antiquities 
of  Babylonia ;  and  as  our  knowledge  of  these  antiquities 
increases,  it  will  be  found  that  not  only  are  Hebrews  and 
Babylonians  equipped  with  many  common  possessions  when 
starting  out  upon  their  intellectual  careers,  but  that,  at  different 
times  and  in  diverse  ways,  the  stimulus  to  religious  advance 
came  to  the  Hebrews  from  the  ancient  centers  of  thought  and 
worship  in  the  Euphrates  Valley.  This  influence  was  particu- 
larly strong  during  the  period  of  Jewish  history  known  as  Baby- 
lonian exile.  The  finishing  touches  to  the  structure  of  Judaism 
1  See  espei  ially  chapters  xxi.,  x.w.,  and  xxvi. 


CONCLUSION.  697 

—  given  on  Babylonian  soil1 — reveal  the  Babylonian  trademark. 
Ezekiel,  in  many  respects  the  most  characteristic  Jewish  figure 
of  the  exile,  is  steeped  in  Babylonian  theology  and  mysticism ; 
and  the  profound  influence  of  Ezekiel  is  recognized  by  modern 
scholarship  in  the  religious  spirit  that  characterizes  the  Jews 
upon  the  reorganization  of  their  commonwealth. 

It  would  be  a  mistake,  however,  to  suppose  that  what  Baby- 
lonia gave  to  others  was  always  the  best  she  had  to  offer. 
Degrading  tendencies,  too,  found  an  entrance  into  post-exilic 
Judaism  through  Babylonian  influence.  Close  contact  of  Jews 
with  Babylonians  served  to  make  the  former  more  accessible  to 
the  popular  beliefs  in  incantations  and  in  the  power  of  demons 
than  they  would  otherwise  have  been.  Not  that  the  Jews  (as 
little  as  any  other  people)  were  ever  entirely  free  from  super- 
stitious practices  ;  but,  living  in  an  atmosphere  charged,  so  to 
speak,  with  magic  and  astrology,  it  was  inevitable  that  even  the 
best  among  them  should  be  infected  by  customs  that  they  daily 
witnessed.  In  the  Babylonian  Talmud,  the  references  to  evil 
spirits  are  numerous.  Specific  incantations  are  introduced,  and 
an  elaborate  system  of  angelology  and  demonology  forms  a 
feature  of  Talmudical  Judaism  in  which,  by  the  side  of  Per- 
sian influences,2  we  may  detect  equally  strong  traces  of  Baby- 
lonian ideas.  In  the  upper  strata  of  the  ruins  of  Nippur, 
hundreds  of  clay  bowls  were  found,  inscribed  with  Jewish 
inscriptions,  in  the  Aramaic  dialect  that  was  spoken  by  the 
Babylonian  Jews.3  Similar  bowls  were  found  elsewhere  in  the 
mounds  of  the  Euphrates  Valley.4  These  bowls  indicate 
the  presence  of  Jews  in  various  parts  of  the  country.5     Placed 

1  See  p.  611. 

2  See  Kohut,  Die  Jiidische  Angelologie  und  Ddmonologie  in  Hirer  Abhdngig- 
keit  vom  Parsismus  (Leipzig,  1866). 

3  Peters'  Nippur,  pp.  182,  395. 

4  See,  e.g.,  Layard,  Nineveh  and  Babylon  (New  York  edition,  1853),  p.  500. 

5  On  the  extent  of  the  settlements  of  Jews  in  Nippur,  see  Ililprecht,  Cuneiform 
Texts,  ix.  27,  28. 


69S  /■■-•/  B  )  /.  <  WIA  N-ASS  YRIAN  RELIGION. 

in  the  graves  as  a  protection  for  the  dead  against  evil  spirits, 
the  inscriptions  contain  formulas  of  denunciation  against  the 
demons  that  constitute  a  striking  parallel  to  the  incantation 
texts  of  ancient  Babylonia.  Some  of  the  demons  are  identi- 
cal with  those  occurring  in  these  texts,  and  by  the  side  of  the 
inscriptions,  there  are  illustrations1  and  magical  designs  to 
which  parallels  exist  on  the  Babylonian  tablets. 

This  custom  of  endeavoring  to  secure  protection  for  the 
dead  through  the  power  of  the  curses  and  propitiatory  phrases 
inscribed  on  bowls  continued  in  vogue  as  late  as  the  ninth 
century  at  the  least,  and  perhaps  considerably  later.  There 
are  indications  also  that  Babvlonian  ideas  found  an  entrance 
into  the  Jewish  Kabbala,  —  the  strange  mystic  system  of  the 
middle  ages,  the  sources  of  which  are  to  be  sought  in  the 
apocalyptic  chapters  of  Ezekiel  and  Daniel. 

Christianity  as  well  as  Judaism  felt  the  fascination  of  the 
mystic  lore  of  Babylonia.  Gunkel2  has  demonstrated  the 
Babylonian  origin  of  the  myth  embodied  in  the  twelfth  chapter 
of  Revelations.  This  myth  is  but  another  form  of  the  Marduk- 
Tiamat  contest,  which,  it  will  be  recalled,  is  the  chief  episode 
in  the  Babylonian  creation  'epic.':i  More  significant  is  the 
influence  exerted  by  the  religious  ideas  of  Babylonia  upon 
the  various  Gnostic  sects  that  arose  within  the  Christian 
Church.  That  the  source  of  Gnosticism  was  to  be  sought 
in  Mesopotamia  was  always  recognized  by  scholars,  but 
until  the  discovery  of  Babylonian  literature,  it  was  customary 
to  seek  for  Jewish  influences  in  the  formation  of  the  various 
Gnostic  sects.  ECessler4  was  the  first  to  demonstrate  clearly 
the    dependence    of    the    leading    ideas    of    Gnosticism    upon 

So,  e.g.,  on  some  of  the  liowls  in  the  University  of  Pennsylvania  collection,  crude 
pictures  ol  Bel-Marduk  and  Islit.n  are  portrayed. 
Yopfung  und  Chaos,  pp.  581 
''  PI'-  1 52 
'"I  eber  Gnosis  und  die  Altbabylonische   Religion,"  Verkandlungen  des  fiinf- 
ten  Oricntalisten  Congrt  ts,  [881,  ii.  ^N.N-305. 


CONCLUSION.  699 

the  Babylonian  cosmology  and  the  conceptions  deveolped 
with  reference  to  the  gods.  More  recently,  Anz1  has  under- 
taken a  renewed  investigation  of  the  subject,  and,  approaching 
the  theme  from  various  points  of  view,  reaches  conclusions 
confirmatory  of  Kessler's  thesis.  All  of  the  Gnostic  sects  have 
certain  fundamental  doctrines  in  common,  such  as  the  dwelling 
of  God  in  the  abyss,2  the  migration  of  the  soul  after  death 
through  seven  zones,  the  emanation  of  aeons  from  a  supreme 
aeon.3  All  these  doctrines  exhibit  such  close  affinities  with 
Babylonian  ideas  as  to  warrant  the  assertion  that  the  religion 
of  Babylonia  survives  in  Gnosticism  ;  and  since,  as  we  know, 
Babylonian  culture  and  customs  maintained  an  undisturbed 
existence  almost  to  the  threshold  of  our  era,  there  is  no  need 
to  go  back  to  the  older  periods  of  the  Babylonian  religion  to 
find  the  connecting  link,  uniting  Gnosticism  with  the  Babylonian 
religion.  The  spread  and  influence  of  the  Gnostic  sects  was 
notoriously  wide.  It  is  sufficient  to  recall  the  chief  centers  of 
Gnostic  schools  of  thought  in  Antioch,  Edessa,  and  Alexandria 
and  the  various  branches  of  the  powerful  sect  of  the  Ophites. 
The  influence  of  these  schools  extended  into  Greece  and  Rome. 
While  the  Gnostic  sects  disappear  in  the  sixth  century,  the 
influence  of  Gnosticism  can  be  followed  down  to  the  twelfth 
century, —  a  significant  testimony  to  the  enduring  qualities  of 
Babylonian  doctrines. 

In  the  ancient  world,  prior  to  the  rise  of  Christianity, 
Egypt,  Persia,  and  Greece  felt  the  influence  of  the  Baby- 
lonian religion.  Budge4  is  of  the  opinion  that  many  of  the 
magic  practices  carried  on  in  the  Egyptian  temples  are  to 
be  traced  back  to  the  incantation  rituals  perfected  by  the 
Babylonian   priests.     In    view  of   the   early   contact   between 

1  Zur  Frage  nach  dan  Ursprung  des  Gnostizismus  (Leipzig,  1S97). 

2  I.e.,  Ea  dwelling  in  the  Apsu.     See  p.  430. 

3  Anu,  the  source  of  all  gods.     See  p.  417. 

*  The  Life  and  Exploits  of  Alexander  the  Great,  pp.  xii.  scq. 


700  BAB  YLONIAN-ASSYRIAN  RELIGION. 

Egypt  and  Babylonia,  as  revealed  by  the  El-Amarna  tablets, 
there  were  certainly  abundant  opportunities  for  the  infusion  of 
Babylonian  views  and  customs  into  Egyptian  cults.  In  Persia, 
the  Mithra  cult  reveals  the  unmistakable  influence  of  Baby- 
lonian conceptions  ;  '  and  if  it  be  recalled  what  a  degree  of 
importance  the  mysteries  connected  with  this  cult  acquired 
among  the  Romans,  another  link  will  be  added  connecting  the 
ramifications  of  ancient  culture  with  the  civilization  of  the 
Euphrates  Valley.  The  strong  admixture  of  Semitic  elements 
both  in  early  Greek  mythology  and  in  Grecian  cults  is  now  so 
generally  admitted  by  scholars  as  to  require  no  further  com- 
ment.2 These  Semitic  elements  are  to  a  large  extent  more 
specifically  Babylonian.  The  spread  of  the  Gilgamesh  epic 
and  of  the  Ishtar  cult  into  Asia  Minor  and  Greece  may  be 
instanced  as  illustrations  of  Babylonian  influence  ;  and  granting 
that  the  Phoenicians  acted  largely  as  the  mediators  in  carrying 
these  ideas  to  the  Greek  settlements,  still  there  must  have 
been  influences  at  work  long  before  this  direct  contact  with 
Semitic  culture  that  prepared  the  way  for  the  ready  acceptance 
which  Semitic  conceptions  and  Semitic  practices  found.  The 
time  has  not  yet  come  for  pronouncing  an  opinion  as  to  the 
influence  exerted  by  Babylonia  upon  lands  in  the  distant  East. 
The  theory  of  DeLacouperie 3  and  Ball,  which  proposes  to 
trace  the  Chinese  script  to  the  hieroglyphic  system  of  Baby- 
lonia, is  still  to  be  tested.  Early  commercial  contact  between 
the  Euphrates  Valley  and  India  is  maintained  as  a  probable 
theory  by  several  scholars,4  and  the  possibility,  therefore,  of 
the  spread  of  the  religious  ideas  of  Babylonia  to  the  distant 
East  is  not  to  be  rejected.     Patient  research  and  the  additional 

1  See  Anz,  as  above,  pp.  7S-S5. 

-  K.  Brown,  Semitic  Influence  in  Hellenic  Mythology  (London,  1898). 
::  Western  Origin  of  the  Early  Chinese  Civilization  (London,  1894). 
•  A  paper  mi  this  subject  wis  announced  by  Jas.  Kennedy  at  the   Eleventh   Inter- 
national Congress  of  Orientalists. 


CONCLUSION.  701 

discoveries  (which  are  constantly  being  made)  will  alone  place 
us  in  a  position  some  day  to  give  a  definite  answer  to  the  ques- 
tion. Whatever  that  answer  may  be,  the  verdict  as  to  the  high 
quality  and  profound  influence  of  the  religion  that  arose  in  the 
valley  of  the  Euphrates  and  that  flourished  for  several  millen- 
niums will  not  be  altered. 

To  show  the  general  indebtedness  of  Grecian,  Roman, 
mediaeval,  and  even  modern  civilization  to  Babylonian  culture 
lies  beyond  the  range  of  this  work,  but  the  profound  impres- 
sion made  upon  the  ancient  world  by  the  remarkable  manifes- 
tations of  religious  thought  in  Babylonia  and  by  the  religious 
activity  that  prevailed  in  that  region  is  but  an  index  of  the 
influence  that  must  have  been  exerted  in  other  directions  by 
the  varied  intellectual  activity  that  converted -a  district,  exposed 
to  the  by  no  means  tender  mercies  of  the  elements,  into  one  of 
the  most  notable  illustrations  of  the  power  and  achievements 
of  man. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY. 


NOTE. 


The  bibliography  is  arranged  in  nine  sections,  the  order  adopted 
corresponding  to  the  broad  subdivisions  of  the  book.  The  beginning 
is  therefore  made : 

(i)  With  references  to  the  most  important  or  most  useful  publica- 
tions, dealing  with  the  excavations  conducted  in  Babylonia  and 
Assyria,  the  method  of  decipherment  of  the  cuneiform  inscriptions, 
the  general  history  of  Babylonia  and  Assyria,  and  the  general  aspects 
of  the  Babylonian-Assyrian  culture.  This  section  corresponds  to  the 
first  two  chapters  of  the  book. 

(2)  The  second  section  is  devoted  to  books,  monographs,  articles, 
and  chapters  in  books,  dealing  with  the  general  subject  of  the  Baby- 
lonian-Assyrian religion. 

In  neither  of  these  two  sections  have  I  aimed  at  being  exhaustive, 
though  the  second  will  be  found,  I  think,  to  include  almost  everything 
of  any  value. 

The  detailed  bibliography  begins  with  the  following  section.  Corre- 
sponding again  to  the  treatment  of  the  subject  in  the  book,  I  take  up 
in  succession  : 

(3)  The  Pantheon. 

(4)  Religious  Texts. 

(5)  Cosmology. 

(6)  Gilgamesh  Epic  (including  the  Deluge  episode). 

(7)  Beliefs  and  Customs  (Views  of  Life  after  Death,  Funeral 
Rites,   Legends,  Ethics,  etc.). 

(8)  Temples  and  Cult. 

(9)  Bearings  of  the  Babylonian-Assyrian  Religion  on  the  Old 
Testament,  and  General  Influence  Exerted  by  the  Religion. 

Of  these  seven  sections,  all  but  the  last  aim  at  being  exhaustive. 
It  was  not  always  easy  to  decide  into  what  division  a  particular  ref- 


706  NOTE. 

erence  belonged,  but  I  have  been  generally  guided  by  the  needs  of 
students  for  whom  this  portion  of  the  bibliography  is  particularly 
intended. 

The  fifth  and  sixth  sections  should  be  taken  together  ;  and  simi- 
larly the  seventh  and  eighth,  while  the  fourth  section  should  of  course 
be  consulted  in  connection  with  the  third,  fifth,  sixth,  seventh,  and 
eighth. 

Under  each  section  the  authors  named  are  arranged  in  alphabetical 
order.  Occasionally,  I  have  added  some  comments  to  the  reference 
given,  as  a  guide  or  a  warning  to  students.  In  a  subject  like  Assyri- 
ology,  where  new  discoveries  are  constantly  being  made  and  progress 
in  the  interpretation  of  texts  is  steadily  going  on,  it  is  inevitable  that 
virus  and  translations  should  be  subject  to  modification  —  sometimes 
slight,  but  frequently  significant.  I  have  endeavored  to  avoid  repe- 
tition of  references.  In  a  few  cases  this  was  unavoidable.  In  the 
second  section  portions  of  books  are  referred  to,  which  by  virtue  of 
their  character  as  very  general  works  had  to  be  assigned  a  place  also 
in  the  first  section.  Two  or  three  of  the  references  in  the  fourth 
section  had  to  be  repeated  elsewhere  ;  and  I  should  also  add  that 
there  are  a  few  references  which  I  have  been  unable  to  verify. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

The  following  abbreviations  are  employed  : 

AB  =  Assyriologische    Bibliothek,  ed.   by  Friedrich    Delitzsch   and    Paul 

Haupt. 
AD  =  Andover  Review. 

AI  =  Academie  des  Inscriptions  et  Belles  Lettres. 
AJP  =  American  Journal  of  Philology. 
AJT  =  American  Journal  of  Theology. 

AJSL  =  American  Journal  of  Semitic  Languages  and  Literatures. 
AL=  Delitzsch's  Assyrische  Lesestiicke.    (3d  ed.) 
APC  =  Annales  de  Philosophic  Chretienne. 
BA  =  Beitrage  zur  Assyriologie. 
BAZ  =  Beilage  zur  Allgemeinen  Zeitung  (Munich). 
BOR  =  Babylonian  and  Oriental  Record. 
B\V  =  Biblical  World. 

CR  =  Comptes  Rendus  de  l'Academie  des  Inscriptions  et  Belles  Lettres. 
DR  =  Deutsche  Rundschau. 
DRe  =  Deutsche  Revue. 
ET=  Expository  Times. 
FLJ  =  Folk  Lore  Journal. 
H  =  Ilebraica. 

IAQR  =  Imperial  and  Asiatic  Quarterly  Review. 
ICO  =  International  Congress  of  Orientalists. 
JA  =  Journal  Asiatique. 

JAOS  =  Journal  of  the  American  Oriental  Society. 
JHUC  =  Johns  Hopkins  University  Circulars. 
JRAS  =  Journal  of  the  Royal  Asiatic  Society. 
JTVI  =  Journal  of  the  Transactions  of  the  Victoria  Institute. 
KAA  =  Koninklijke  Akademie  van  Wetenschappen  (Amsterdam). 
KAW  =  Konigliche  Akademie  der  Wissenschaften  zu  Berlin. 

M  =  Museon. 

MVG  =  Mittheilungen  der  Vorderasiatischen  Gesellschaft. 

OTS  =  01d  Testament  Student. 

PAOS  =  Proceedings  of  the  American  Oriental  Society. 


70S  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

PR  =  Presbyterian  Review. 

PSBA        Proceedings  of  the  Society  of  Biblical  Archaeology. 

R  =  Rawlinson's  '  Selection  from  the  miscellaneous  Inscriptions  of  Western 

Asia.'     (London  1S61-1S91.)      5  vols. 
R  \       R(  vue  d'Assyriologie  et  d'Areheologie  Orientale. 
RAr=  Revue  Archeologique. 
RB  =  Revue  Biblique. 
Rl    =  Revue  Critique. 
RHR       Ri  vue  de  l'Histoire  des  Religions. 
RIA  =  Royal  Irish  Academy. 
RP  =  Records  of  the  Past. 
RR  -  Revue  des  Religions. 
RS=  Revue  Semitique. 
RT  =  Recueil   de   Travaux    relatifs    a   la    Philologie   et   a   l'Archeologie 

Egyptiennes  et  Assyriennes. 
SST  =  Sunday  School  Times. 

TSB  \     =  Transactions  of  the  Society  of  Biblical  Archaeology. 
TZ  =  Theologische  Zeitblatter. 

WZKM  =  Wiener  Zeitschrift  fiir  die  Kunde  des  Morgenlandes. 
ZA  =  Zeitschrift  fiir  Assyriologie. 

ZATW  —  Zeitschrift  fiir  die  Alttestamentliche  Wissenschaft. 
ZDMG  =  Zeitschrift  der  Deutsch-Morgenlandischen  Gesellschaft. 
ZK  =  Zeitschrift  fiir  Keilschriftforschung. 

Periodicals,  the  volumes  of  which  correspond  to  years,  are  quoted  by  the  years  ; 
others,  by  the  volumes,  or  by  series,  or  by  series  and  volumes. 

Roman  numerals  indicate  volumes,  except  in  the  case  of  PAOS,  where  they  indi- 
cate pages;  Arabic  numerals  indicate  pages  or  plates. 

I. 

I  scavations. —  Method  of  Decipherment. —  History  of  Babylonia 
\\i>  Assyria.  —  Origin  and  General  Aspects  of  Babylonian  and 
Assyrian  Culture.  —  General  Bibliography. 

(a)    Excavations  and  Decipherment. 

Kaulen,  Fr. —  Assyrien  und   Babylonien  nach  den   neuesten  Ent- 

deckungen.     (4th  ed.     Freiburg  1891.) 

[Popular  account  of  excavations,  method  of  decipherment,  Babylonian 
literature  and  architecture.  A  work  in  English  of  this  character  is  much  to  be 
desired.  See  also  Hommel,  F.  —  Geschichte  Babyloniens  und  Assyriens. 
Berlin  1885.  pp.  30-]  ^4  :  Evetts,  B.  A.  —  New  Light  on  the  Holy  Land. 
I  ondon  1891.     pp.  79-129.] 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  709 

(l>)    History. 

Duncker,   Max.  —  Geschichte  des  Alterthums.      Vols.   I.  and  II. 
(5th  ed.      Berlin  1878.) 

[Also  English  translation  of  earlier  edition.] 

Hommel,  F.  —  Geschichte  Babyloniens  und  Assyriens.  (Berlin  1885.) 

Geschichte  des  alten  Morgenlandes.     (Stuttgart  1895.) 

[Chapters  I.,  IV.-VIII.] 

Lenormant,  Francois  [and  Ernest  Babelon].  —  Histoire   an- 
cienne  de  l'Orient.     Vol.  IV.     (9th  ed.     Paris  1885.) 

Maspero,  G.  —  The  Dawn  of  Civilization  :     Egypt  and  Chaldaea. 
(London  1894.) 

The    Struggle    of    the    Nations  :    Egypt,   Syria,   and    Assyria. 

(London  1896.) 

[Replacing  earlier  historical  works  of  this  author.] 

Meyer,  Ed.  —  Geschichte  des  Alterthums.  Vol.  I.  (Stuttgart  1884.) 

Muerdter    und    Delitzsch.  —  Kurzgefasste    Geschichte    Babylo- 
niens und  Assyriens.     (2d  ed.     Stuttgart  1 891.) 

Ragozin,  Z.  —  (i)  The  Story  of  Chaldea.  (2)  The  Story  of  Assyria. 
(New  York  1 886-1 887.) 

Rawlinson,  George.  —  The  Five  Great  Monarchies  of  the  Ancient 
Eastern  World.     Vols.  I.— III.     (4th  ed.     London  1879.) 
[Antiquated,  but  still  of  some  use.] 

Rogers,    R.   W.  —  Outlines    of   the    History   of    Early    Babylonia. 
(Leipzig  1895.) 

Schmidt,  Valdemar.  —  Assyriens  og  Aegyptens  gamle  Historic 
(Copenhagen  1 872-1 877.) 

[pp-  347-461-] 
Tiele,  C.  P.  —  Babylonisch-Assyrische  Geschichte.     (Gotha  1886.) 

[The  best  history  that  has  as  yet  been  published.] 
Wachsmuth,  Curt.  —  Einleitung  in  das   Studium   der  alten   Ge- 
schichte.    (Leipzig  1895.) 

[pp.  365-403  "  Babylonier  und  A  ssyrier,"  —  indication  of  ancient  and  mod- 
ern sources  for  the  study.] 
Winckler,  Hugo.  —  Geschichte  Babyloniens  und  Assyriens.  (Leip- 
zig 1892;) 


710  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

(c)    Origin  and  General  Aspects  of  Babylonian-Assyrian  Culture. 

Baumstark,  A.  —  Babylon  and  Babylonia. 

[In  Pauly-Wissowa's  Real  Encyclopaedie,  II.  cols.  2667-2718.] 
BEZOLD,  C.  —  Assyria. 

\Jb.  II.  cols.  1751-1771.] 

Hommel,  F.  —  Der  Babylonische  Ursprung  der  Aegyptischen  Kul- 

tur.      (Munich  1892.) 
Ihering,    Rudolph    von.   —  Vorgeschichte    der  .  Indo-Europaer. 

(Leipzig  1894.)     2tes  Buch,  f  Arier  und  Semiten,'  pp.  93-305. 

[A  most  suggestive  sketch  of  the  development  and  influence  of  Babylonian 
culture;  also  in  English  translation,  'The  Evolution  of  the  Aryan.'  New 
^i  ork  1S97.] 

Nikkl,  Johannes.  —  Herodot  und  die  Keilschriftforschung.     (Pad- 

erborn  1896.) 
PEISER,   F.   E.  --  Skizze   der   Babylonischen   Gesellschaft.     (Berlin 

1896.) 

[Brief  but  capital  sketch  of  Babylonian  culture  and  social  life.] 

(d)   Bibliography. 

Bezold,  C.  —  Kurzgefasster  Ueberblick  iiber  die  Babylonisch- 
Assyrische    Literatur.      (Leipzig   1886.) 

[A  new  edition  is  needed  of  this  most  valuable  work.] 

hi  111  /mii,  FRIEDRICH.  -  '  Litteratura  '  in  the  appendix  to  his 
'Assyrian  Grammar.'     (London  1889.)      pp.  55-7S. 

Kaulen,  Fr.  —  Assyrien  und  Babylonien  (as  above),    pp.  248-266. 

Lincke,  A.  --  Bericht  iiber  die  Fortschritte  der  Assyriologie  in  den 
Jahren  .1886-1893.      (Leipzig  1894.) 

Full  bibliographical  reports  are  given  in  : 

(1)  The  American  Journal  of    Semitic   Languages  and   Literatures 
(University  of  Chicago  ;  quarterly). 

(2)  Jahrbiicher   fur   Geschichte,  ed.   by    I.  Jastrovv   and    E.    Berner 
(  Berlin  ;   annual). 

(3)  Orientalische  Bibliographic,  ed.  by  Lucian  Scherman  (Berlin; 
semi-annual). 


BIBLIO  GRA  PHY.  7 1 1 

(4)  Zeitschrift  fur  Assyriologie,  ed.  by  C.  Bezold  (Munich  ;  quarterly). 

(5)  Revue  d' Assyriologie  et  d'Archeologie  Orientale,  ed.  by  J.  Oppert 

and  E.  Ledrain  (Paris  ;  published  at  irregular  intervals). 


II. 

General  Works  and  Articles  on  the  Religion  of  Babylonia  and 

Assyria. 

Berger,  P.  —  'Assyrie'  in  Lichtenberger's  'Encyclopedic  des  Sci- 
ences Religieuses.' 

Boscawen,  W.  St.  Chad.  —  Lectures  on  the  Religion  of  Babylonia 
[abstract]  BOR  III.  1 18-120,  150-163. 

The  Religion  of  Babylonia  in  '  Religious  Systems  of  the  World.' 

(Swan  Sonnenschein  &  Co.     1S96.     pp.  15-25.) 

Delitzsch,  Friedrich.  —  The  Religion  of  the  Kassites.     H  1S85. 
189-191. 

[From  Delitzsch's  '  Sprache  der  Kossaer.'     Leipzig  1884.    pp.  51-54-] 

Eerdmans,  B.  D.  —  Babylonian-Assyrian  Religion. 

[In  '  Progress,'  a  publication  issued  by  the  University  Association,  Chicago, 
111.     3d  series,  No.  6  (1897),  pp.  403-415.] 

Finzi,    Felice.  —  Ricerche    per   lo    Studio    dell'   Antichita  Assira. 
(Rome  1872.)     Libro  Secondo.     Mitologia,  pp.  433-554- 

[General  sketch  of  the  religion,  more  particularly  of  the  pantheon   and 
legends  of  Babylonia  and  Assyria.] 

Guyard,  S.  —  Bulletin  de  la  Religion  Assyro-Babylonienne.     RHR 
I.  327-345  5    V.  253-278. 

Halevy,  Joseph.  —  La  Religion  des  Anciens  Babyloniens  et  son 
plus  recent  historien  M.  Sayce.     RHR  XVII.  169-21S. 

[Elaborate  review  of  Sayce's  work  on  the  '  Religion  of  the  Babylonians, 
with  summary  of  Halevy's  own  views.] 

Heuzey,    Leon.  —  Description   of     Monuments    in     De     Sarzec's 
f  De'couvertes  en  Chalde'e.'     (Paris  1 889-1 891.)     pp.  77-240. 

[Contains  much  valuable  information  on  religious  art,  votive  objects,  repre- 
sentations of  religious  ceremonies.     The  publication  is  not  yet  complete 

Hewitt,  J.  F. Early  History  of  Northern  India,  Part  III.    JRAS, 

1889,  527-583- 

[An  attempt  to  trace  the  origin  of  Indian  civilization  to  emigrants  from 
southern  Babylonia.     The  investigation  lias  little  value.] 


7 1  >  BIBLIO  GRAPH  Y. 

IIincks,  Edward.  —  On  the  Assyrian  Mythology.  RIA  Trans- 
actions XXII.      Polite  Literature,  1854,  405-422. 

HOMMEL,  F.  —  Die    Semitischen  Volker    unci   Sprachen.     (Leipzig 
1883.)     pp.    356-396.       Die    Religion    der    alten    Babylonier, 
pp.  266-356.     Sprache  und  Literatur  der  Sumero-Akkadier. 
[Specimens  of  hymns  and  incantations.] 

J  kr  km  ias,  Friedrich.  —  '  Die  Babylonier  und  Assyrier '  in  Chantepie 
de  la  Saussaye's  '  Lehrbuch  der  Religionsgeschichte.'  (2d  ed. 
Freiburg  1897.)      I.  163-221. 

[An  excellent  sketch  of  the  Babylonian-Assyrian  religion.] 

Lenormant,  Francois.  —  Les  Sciences  Occultes  en  Asie.  I.  La 
Magie  chez  les  Chaldeens  etles  Origines  Accadiennes.  II.  La 
Divination  et  la  Science  des  Presages  chez  les  Chaldeens.  (Paris 

1874-1875-) 

[Also  in  English  translation  (in  part)  under  the  title  '  Chaldaean  Magic' 
London  1877.] 

Loisy,   A. --Etudes  sur    la    Religion    Chaldeo-Assyrienne.       (RR, 
1890-1S92.) 
[Seven  articles.] 

Meyer,  Ed.  —  Geschichte  des  Alterthums.  I.  174-183.  (Stuttgart 
1884.) 

Murdter  und  Delitzsch.  —  Kurzgefasste  Geschichte  Rabyloniens 
und  Assyriens.     (2d  ed.     Stuttgart  1891.)     pp.  23-53. 

Oppert,  J.  —  '  Babylone  et  Chaldee '  in  LichtenbergeFs  'Encyclo- 
pedic des  Sciences  Religieuses.' 

I'im  ins,  T.  G.  —  The  Religious  Ideas  of  the  Babylonians.     JTVI 

XXVIII.   1-22. 

Pressense,  E.  de.  —  La  Religion  Chaldeo-Assyrienne.     RHRXIV. 

73-94- 
Rawlinson,    GEORGE.  —  The    Religions   of    the    Ancient    World. 
(New  York  1883.) 

[Chapter  II.  —  The  Religion  of  the  Assyrians  and  Babylonians.] 
-  The    Religion  of  Assyria  in  'Religious  Systems  of  the  World.' 
(Swan  Sonnenschcin  &  Co.     London  1896.)     pp.  26-41. 
Rawlinson,  H.  C.  —  The  Religion  of  the  Babylonians  and  Assyrians. 

[In  George   Kawlinson's  'The  History  of  Herodotus.'  London  1859.  Vol. 
I-  I  ssaj  \.| 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  713 

Sayce,  A.  H.  —  The  Origin  and  Growth  of  Religion  as  Illustrated 
by  the  Religion  of  the  Ancient  Babylonians.     (London  1887.) 

[Brilliant  and  suggestive,  but  unreliable  in  details.  The  translations 
attached  to  the  volume  are  to  be  accepted  with  caution.  See  Halevy's  elab- 
orate review,  RHR  XVII.  169-21S.] 

Strong,  S.  A.  —  Die  Religion  der  Babylonier. 

[Announced  to  appear.] 

Schwally,  F.  — f  Die  Religion  der  Babylonier  und  Assyrier,'  in 
Friedrich  von  Hellwald's  '  Kulturgeschichte  in  ihrer  natiirlichen 
Entwicklung    bis   zur    Gegenwart.'     (4th    ed.     Leipzig    1896.) 

I.  423-433- 
Tiele,   C.   P.  —  Babylonisch-Assyrische    Geschichte.     (1SS6.)     pp. 

5 1  5—557.      Religion:   Die  Mythologie  und  Glaubenslehre. 
Vergelijkende  Geschiedenis  der  Aegyptische  en  Mesopotamische 

Godsdiensten.     (Amsterdam   1869.)     pp.  282-413.     De  Gods- 

dienst  van  Babel  en  Assur. 

[French  translation  (abridged)  by  G.  Collins,  '  Histoire  Compareedes  An- 
ciennes  Religions  de  l'Egypte  et  des  Peuples  Semitiques.'  Paris  1S82. 
pp.  145-255.  La  Religion  de  Babylonie  et  de  l'Assyrie.  Also  English  trans- 
lation by  J.  Ballingue.     1SS2.] 

Geschichte  der  Religion  im  Alterthum  bis  auf  Alexander  den 

Grossen.     (Gotha  1895.)     I.  127-216.     Die  Religion  in  Baby- 
lonien  und  Assyrien. 

[Also  in  Dutch.     Amsterdam  1S93.] 

III. 
Pantheon,  Gods,  Spirits,  Heroes. 

Ball,  C.  J.  —  Tammuz,  the  Swine-god.     PSBA  XVI.  195-200. 
Barton,   G.  A.  —  The  Semitic  Ishtar  Cult.     H   IX.  131-165;   X. 

i-73- 
Was  Ilu  Ever  a  Distinct  Deity  in  Babylonia?*  H   X.  206,  207. 


Bezold,   C.  —  A   Cuneiform   List  of  Gods.      PSBA  XL   173,    174; 

see  also  IX.  377. 

■ Note  on  the  god  Addu  or  Daddu.     lb.  p.  377. 

Ueber    Keilinschriftliche   Babylonisch-Assyrische  Gottertypen. 

ZA  IX.  1 14-125,  405-409. 


714  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

CHWOLSON,    D.  A.    -  Ueber  Tammuz   und  die    Menschenverehrung 

bei  den  alten  Babyloniern.     (St.  Petersburg  i860.) 
De  Cara,  <  !aesare.  —  Identificazione  d'  Iside  e  d'  Osiride  con  Ishtar 

ed  Ashur.     8th  ICO,  Section  Semitique  2nic  Fasc,  275-278. 
Di  litzsi  h,  Friedrich. —  Article  on  '  Thammuz '  in  '  Calwer,  Bibel- 

lexikon.'     (Calw  und  Stuttgart  1885.) 
-  Articles   on    Dagon,   Merodach;  Nebo,  Nergal,   Nisrocli,  Rim- 

mon.     lb. 
Eerdmans,    B.  —  Goddess    A    (or    Malkatu)    in    '  Melekdienst    en 

Vereering  von  Hemellichamen  in  Israel's  Assyrische  I'eriode.' 

(Leiden  1891.)     pp.  73-82. 
Guyard,  S.    -  Le  Dieu  Assyrien  Ninib.     RC,  1879,  ier  Mars. 
Hoffmann,  G.  —  Neue  und  Alte  Gotter  (Nin-gal,  Nusku,  Ea,  Xabu, 

Gibil,  Ninib,  Nergal,  Sin).     ZA  XI.  258-292. 

1 1  liiefly  discussions  of  symbols  of  these  deities  found  upon  seal  cylinders.] 
Hommel,   Fritz. --Die   Identitat  der  altesten  Babylonischen  und 

Aegyptischen  Gottergenealogie  und  der  Babylonische  Ursprung 

der  Aegyptischen  Kultur.     9th  ICO  II.  218-244. 

Note  on  Ninib.     PSBA  XIX.  312-314. 
Jastrow,  Morris,  Jr.  —  On  the  Assyrian  Kuduru  and  the  Ring  of 

the   Sun-god  in   the  Abu-Habba  Tablet.     PAOS,  Oct.  1888. 

XCV.   XCVIII. 
Jensen,  P. —  Ueber  einige   Sumero-Akkadische    und    Babylonisch- 

Assyrische  Gotternamen.     ZA,  [886.     I.  1-24. 

[Anshar,    Ashur,  Igigi,  Duzu,  or  Tammuz.     Cf.  Schrader's   remarks,  id. 
pp.  2  19  217.] 

Die  Cotter  Amurru  (u)  und  Ashratu.     ZA  XI.  302-305. 

Nik(k)al-Sharratu ;  Sharratu  in  Harran.     ZA  XI.  293-301. 

J i-K  1  mias,  A. —  Articles  on  Ashur,  Marduk,  Nebo,  Nergal,  Shamash, 

Sin,  Tammuz  in  Roscher's  'Ausfiihrliches  Lexikon  der  Griechi- 

si  hen  und  Romischen  Mythologie.' 

[Articles  on  Adar,   \uu,  Anunnaki,  Ea,  Etana  announced  to  appear  in  the 
supplement  to  Roscher's  'Ausfiihrliches  Lexikon,'  etc.] 

Lenorm  \\t,  Francois.       II  mito  di  Adone-Tammuz  neidocumenti 
cuneiformi.     4th  ICO,  1878.     I.  143-173. 
Sur  le  nom  de  Tammuz.     1st  ICO  II.  149-165. 
I  es  Dieux  de  Babylone  et  de  l'Assyrie.     (Paris  1877.) 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  715 

LuzzATO,  P.  —  L'Existence  cTun  Dieu  Assyrien  nomm^  Semiramis. 

J  A,  4th  Series,  XVII.  465-480. 
Lyon,  D.  G.  —  Was  there  at  the  Head  of  the  Babylonian  Pantheon 

a   Deity   Bearing  the  Name  El?     PAOS,    May   1883,  clxiv.- 

clxviii. 

The  Pantheon  of  Assurbanipal.     PAOS,  Oct.  1888,  xciv.,  xcv. 

Menant,  J.  —  Le  Mythe  de  Dagon.     RHR  XI.  295-301. 

[Also  in  '  Les  Pierres  Gravees  de  la  Haute  Asie.     Recherches  de  la  Glyp- 
tique  Orientate.'     Paris  1883.] 

-, Le  Pantheon  Assyro-Chaldeen.     Les  Beltis.     RHR  VIII.  489- 

519. 

[The  representation  of  goddesses  engraved  on  seal  cylinders.    See  also 

'  Les  Pierres  Gravees  de  la  Haute  Asie,'  etc.,  as  above.] 
Meyer,    Eduard.  —  Articles    Baal  and    Astarte    (with    references 

to  Bel  and   Ishtar)   in  Roscher's  'Ausfuhrliches   Lexikon  der 

Griechischen  und  Romischen  Mythologie.' 
Nicolsky,  M.  V.  —  La  Deesse  des  Cylindres  et  des  Statuettes  Baby- 

loniennes.     RAr,  3™e  serie,  XX.  36-43. 
Offord,  J.  —  The  Nude  Goddess  in  Assyro-Babylonian  Art.    PSPA 

XVIII.  156,  157. 
Oppert,  Jules.  —  La  Vraie  Assimilation  de  la  Divinite  de  Tello. 

CR,  1884,  231-233. 

Le  Dieu  de  Sirtella  [I.e.,  Lagash].     ZK  II.  261,  262. 

[M.  Oppert  accepts  the  reading  Nin-girsu  first  proposed  by  Arthur  Amiaud. 
//;.  pp.  151,  152.] 

Adad.     ZA  IX.  310-314. 

[Discussion  of  pronunciation.     See  also  Hilprecht,  '  Assyriaca,'  pp.  76-7S, 
and  Jastrow,  AJSL  XII.  143.] 
Pinches,  Theo.  G.  —  Note  upon  the  divine  name  A.     PSBA  XIII. 
25-27,  42-56. 

Was  Ninib  the  Most  High  God  of  Salem  ?     lb.  XVI.  225-229. 

The  Pronunciation  of  the  Name  of  the  Plague-god,  Urra  not 

Dibbarra.     BOR  I.  207,  208. 
[See  Scheil,  RT.  XX.  57.] 

A  Bilingual   List  of  Assyrian  Gods.     Academy,  1887,  No.  816. 

[See  Evetts,  ib.  No.  Si 9.] 


716  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

RAWLINSON,  H.  C. --  Notes  on   Captain    Durand's  Report  upon  the 
Islands  of  Bahrein.     J  RAS,  1880,  201-227. 

[Contains  important  remarks  on  the  origin  of  Ea  worship  at  the  Persian 
Gulf,  pp.  202-20S.] 

REISNER,  GEORGE.  —  The   Different  Classes  of    Babylonian  Spirits. 

I 'A  OS,  April  1S92,  exev.,  exevi. 
Revillout,  E.  and  V.  —  Istar  Taribi.     COR  II.  57-59. 
ROBIOU,   F.   A.  —  A  Study    on    Egyptian    and    Babylonian    Triads. 

IAQR,  1894. 
Sayce,  A.  II.-    Who  was  Dagon?     SST,  1893,  No.  21. 

—  The  Cod  Ramman.     ZA  II.  331,  332. 
Sc  iii.il,   Fr.  V.  --  Le  Dieu-roi  Bur-Sin  Planete.     ZA  XII.  265,  266. 

-  Ishtar  sous  la  symbole  de  la  vache.      RT  XX.  62. 

-  Le  Culte  de  Gudea.     RT  XVIII.  64-74. 

Schrader,  I'..  —  Die  Gottin  Ishtar  als  Malkatu  und  Sharratu.     ZA 
HI.  353-364:   IV.  74,75- 

-  Die    Malkat    hash-Shamayim    und    ihr    Aramaisch-Assyrisches 

Aequivalent.      RAW  Sitzungsberichte,  1886,  477-491. 

[See  also  Stade  in   ZATW   VI.  123-132;    2S9-339 ;    and  Kuenen  KAA 
Vfdeeling '  Letterkunde,'  1S88,  157-189.] 

Talbot,   II.    Fox. --The  Legend  of  Ishtar  Descending  to  Hades. 

TSBA  II.  179-212.     See  also  RPI,  141-149.  ' 
Thureau-Daugin,    Fu.--La    Lecture    de  1'Ideogramme   AN-IM 

(Ramman).     J  A,  9th  Series,  II.  3S5-393. 
also  ( ippert,  ib.  pp.  393-3'/'.] 
TlELE,  C.  I'.    -La   De'esse   Ishtar  surtout  dans  le  mythe  Babylonien. 

6th  ICO,  Part  II.  Section  I.  493-506. 

[See  also  discussion  in  the  Comptes  Rendus  of  the  Congress,  pp.  87-91.] 

Die  Beteekenis  van  Eaen  zijn  verkoudung  tot  Marduk  en  Nabu. 

KAA  Verslagen  en  Mededeelingen  'Letterkunde,-  [887,67-81. 
Ward,  W.  H.--The  Babylonian  Gods  in  Babylonian  Art.     PAOS, 

May  [890,  xv.  -xviii. 

Was  there  a  Babylonian  Gate-god?     Academy,  1888,  No.  847. 

WlNCKLER,  II.        Die  Istar  von  Ninevein  Egypten.     MVG  I.  286-289. 
Witte,  J.  de.        Sur  le  nom  de  Thamouz  attribue  a  Adonis.     M, 

1887,  Si  seq. 
7|  hnpfund,  R.        Altbabylonische  Cotter  und  Heldensagen.     BAZ, 

1891,  Nos.  39,  40,  52,  56,  63. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  717 

IV. 

Religious  Texts. 
Hymns,  Incantations,  Omens,  Oracles,  Prayers,  Legends,  Myths,  Votive  Texts. 

Ball,   C.   J.  — A    Bilingual    Hymn   (IVR   46,   5-19)    PSBA    XV. 

51-54- 

A  Babylonian  Ritual  Text.     JRAS,  1892,  841-853. 

Banks,   E.  J.  —  Sumerisch-Babylonische   Hymnen  der  von  George 

Reisner   herausgegebenen    Sammlung,    umschrieben,   iibersetzt 

unci  erklart.      (Breslau  1897.) 
Barton,  G.  A.  —  Esarhaddon's  Account  of  the  Restoration  of  Ish- 

tar's  Temple  at  Erech.     PAOS,  May  1891,  exxx.-exxxii. 
Bertin,  G.  —  Akkadian  Hymn  to  the  Setting  Sun.     RP,  new  series, 

II.  190-193. 
Bezold,  C.  —  Remarks  on  Some  Unpublished  Cuneiform  Syllabaries 

with  Respect  to  Prayers  and  Incantations  written  in  Interlinear 

Form.      PSBA  X.  418-423. 
Translation  and  Analysis  of  a  Hymn  to  the  Sun-god  (Sp  III.). 

RA  I.  157-161. 
Boissier,  Alfred.  —  Deux  Documents  Assyriens  relatifs  aux  Pre- 
sages.    RS  I.  63-70,  168-172. 
— —  Documents  Assyriens  relatifs  aux  Presages. 

[Vols.  I.  and  II.,  Paris  1S94-1S97.     Vol.  III.  announced.] 

Notes  d'Assyriologie.     RS  VI.  143-15'- 

[Two  texts  —  a  Prayer  and  an  Incantation.] 
Boscawen,  W.  St.  Chad.  —  The   Babylonian   Legend  of  the  Ser- 
pent Tempter.     BOR  IV.  251-255. 

Babylonian  Teraphim.     BOR  I.  39,  4°- 

The  Legend  of  the  Tower  of  Babel.      RP  III.  129-132  ;  also 

in  the  TSBA  V.  303-312. 

[The  interpretation  is  erroneous.] 
Brunnow,  R.  —  Assyrian  Hymns.    ZA  IV.  1-40,  225-258  ;  V.  55-80. 

[Hymns  to  Shamash,  Marduk,  and  Ishtar.] 
Budge,   Ernest  A.  --  Assyrian  Incantations   to    Fire   and    Water. 
RP  XL  133-138  ;  also  in  TSBA  VI.  42Q-435- 


718  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

<  k  ug,  Jas.  A.       Prayer  of  the  Assyrian  King  Ashurbanipal.    H  X. 

Assyrian    and    Babylonian    Religious    Texts,    Vols.   I.  and    II. 
(Leipzig  1895  -1897.)     AB  XIII. 

[Announces  also  volumes  of  texts  (1)  Prayers  to  Shamash  and  Ramman. 
and  (2)  Series  '  Illumination  of    Bel.'] 

K  69  (a  hymn).     ZA  XI.  276. 

An  Assyrian   Incantation  to  the  God  Sin,  cir.  650  B.C.      H   XI. 

1 01-109. 
Delattkk,  A.  J.  —  The  Oracles  Given   in    Favor  of    Esarhaddon. 

R.P,  new  series,  III.  25-31  ;  see  also  BOR  III.  25-31. 

Dl  litzsch,  Friedrich.  —  Babylonisch-Assyrisches  Psalmbuch. 

[Announced  to  appear  in  the  '  Abhandlungen  der  koniglichen  Gesellschaft 
der  Wissenschaften  zu  Leipzig.'] 

Assyrische  Lesestiicke.     (Leipzig  1S85.     3d  ed.) 

[Contains  a  selection  of  religious  texts  as  follows:  pp.  93-09,  Creation  tab- 
lets; 99-109,  Deluge  episode  ;  117,  118,  Oracle  to  Esarhaddon;  130-132,  In- 
cantations;  134-136,  Hymn  to  Ishtar.] 

IA  kits,  B.  T.  A.  --  An   Assyrian   Religious  Text.      PSBA  X.  478, 
479  and  two  plates. 

[Apparently  a  royal  prayer.] 
Halevy,  J.  — Assyrian  Fragments.     RP  XI.  157-162. 

I  Part  of  a  hymn,  of  a  penitential  psalm,  etc.] 

Documents  religieux  de  PAssyrie  et  de  la  Babylonie.     (Paris 

1SS2.) 

Textes   religieux    Babyloniens  en  double   Redaction.      RS   IV. 

150-160,  245-251,  344-34S. 

'  Irs  Inscriptions  peints  de  Citium  '  in  '  Melanges  de  Critique  et 

d'l  listoire,'  pp.  [65-196. 

[Translation  in  large  part  and  discussion  of  Ishtar's  descent  into  the 
nether  world.] 

Harper,   Edward  T.  -    Die  Babylonischen   Legenden  von   Etana, 
Zu,  Adapa  und  Dibbarra.     PA  II.  390-521. 
[See  also  Academy  1891,  No.  976.] 

11  vupt,  l'\ri,.       Akkadische  und  Sumerische  Keilschrifttexte.  (Leip- 
zig 1881    1882.) 

[Contains  pp.  75-79        -     ,  Incantations;  79, 11 5-131  Hymns  and  Psalms.] 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  7 1  <j 

Jastrow,  Morris,  Jr.  —  A  fragment  of  the  Babylonian  "  Dibbarra  " 
Epic.  Publications  of  the  University  of  Pennsylvania.  Series 
in  Philology,  Literature,  and  Archaeology,  Vol.  I.,  No.  2.  (Boston 
1 89l.) 

A  new  Fragment  of  the  Babylonian  Etana  Legend.     BA  III. 

363-384. 

Jensen,  P.  —  De  Incantamentorum  Sumerico-Assyrorum  seriei  quae 

dicitur  "surbu"  Tabula  VI.  ZK   I.  279-322  ;   II.  15-61  ;  also 

306-311,  416-425. 

[Appeared  as  a  revised  and  separate  publication  under  same  title  with  the 
addition  of  the  words  "  commentatio  Philologica."     Munich,  Straub,  1885.] 

Hymnen  auf  das  Wiedererscheinen  der  drei  grossen  Lichtgtitter. 

ZA  II.  76-94,  191-204. 

[Hymns  to  Sin,  Shamash,  and  Ishtar.  A  volume  by  Jensen,  embodying 
translation  of  religious  texts  is  in  course  of  preparation  for  Schrader's  '  Keil- 
schriftliche  Bibliothek.'] 

Jeremias,  A.  —  Die  Hollenfahrt  der  Ishtar.     Eine  altbabylonische 

Beschworungslegende.     (Munich  1886.) 
King,   L.  W.  —  Babylonian  Magic  and  Sorcery,  being  'the  Prayers 

of  the  Lifting  of  the  Hand.'     (London  1896.) 

New  Fragments  of  the  Dibbarra  Legend.     ZA  XL  50-62. 

Knudtzon,  J.  A.  —  Assyrische  Gebete  an  den  Sonnengott  fiir  Staat 

und  koniidiches  Haus  aus  der  Zeit  Asarhaddons  und  Assurbani- 

pals.       Band  I.   Autographierte   Texte  ;    Band   II.   Kinleitung, 

Umschrift  und  Erklarung  Verzeichnisse.     (Leipzig  1S93.) 
Lenormant,   FRANgois.  --  Chaldaean  Hymns  to  the  Sun.      RP  X. 

1 19-128. 
Hymne   au   Soleil.     Texte  primitif  Accadien.     JA,  7^  Series, 

XII.  378  ;  XIII.  1-98  ;  postscriptum  ib.  XIV.  264,  265. 
Une  Incantation  Magique  Chaldeenne.    RAr,  2d  Series,  XXXIV. 

254-262. 

Lettres  Assyriologiques.      2™e  Se'rie  Etudes  Accadiennes,  Vols. 

II.  and  III.     (Paris  1 874-1 879.) 

[Contains  numerous  hymns  and  incantations  accompanied  by  a  French 
translation.] 

Translations  of  religious  texts  in  '  Les  Origines  de  1'Histoire 

d'apres  la  Bible  et  les  Traditions  des  Peuples  orientaux.'    (Paris 
1880-1882.)     2  vols. 


720  BIBLIO  GA'A  J  •//  V. 

LYON,   D.   G.  —  Assyrian  and  Babylonian   Royal  Prayers.     PAOS, 

October  1888.     XCIII.,  XCIV. 

<  m  a  Sacrificial   Tablet  from  Sippar.     PAOS,  May  1886,  xxx. 
MESSERSCHMIDT,    L. --Tabula    VA.    Tli.    246,    Babylonica    Musei 

Berolinensis  primum  editur  commentarioque  instruitur.     (Kirch- 

hain  1896.) 

[A  hymn.] 

Oppert,  J.  —  'Chants  et  Invocations'  in  Eichoff  and  David  rChef 
d'ceuvres  litteraires  de  l'Inde,  de  la  Perse,  de  l'Egypte  et  de  la 
Chine.'      (Paris.)      II.  211-219. 

[Translations  of  selected  prayers,  hymns,  and  incantations.] 

Fragments  Mythologiques.     (Paris  1882.) 

[Reprints  of  several  articles.] 

-  Translation  of  III.  Rawlinson,  pi.  65,  in  JA,6'h  Series,  XVIII. 

449-453- 

-  Hymnes  en  Sumerien  et  en  Accadien  ou  Assyrien.     1st  ICO. 
1 1.  21  7-224. 

[A  hymn  to  Ishtar  in  dialogue  form.] 

-  Le  Champ  Sacre  de  la  Deesse  Nina.     CR,  1893,  326-344.    See 
also  ZA  VII.  360-374. 

[Contains  important  remarks  about  the  goddess  Nina  in  connection  with 
the  text  published  by  Hilprecht,  '  Old  Babylonian  Inscriptions,'  1. 1,  pis.  30,  31.] 

Traduction  de  Quelques  Textes  Assyriens.    .  .  .     Louange  du 

Dieu  Nibir  et  de  ses  sept  Attributions.     4th  ICO  I.  233-235. 

-  L'Immortalite  de  Tame  chez  les  Chaldeens.     (Paris  1875.) 

[Legend  of  Ishtar's  descent  to  the  lower  world.] 

-  Chant  en  Sumerien  et  en  Assyrien  sur  une  e'pide'mie.     JA,  7th 
Scries,  I.  289-293. 

[Translation  of  tablet  K  1284  (incantation  against  Namtar)  and  of  IIR  19.] 

-  Notice  sur  d'anciennes  formules  d' Incantation   et  autres  dans 
une  langue  anteVieure  au  Babylonien.    J  A,  7th  Series,  I.  1 13-122. 

[Translation  of  II   Rawl.  17,  18.] 

-  Babylonian  legends  found  at  Khorsabad.      RP  XI.  41-44. 

[See  also  translations  of  various  religious  texts  in'  Expedition  Scientifique 
en  Mesopotamie,'  pp.  328-350.] 

I'm  ru,  F.  E.  —  Ein  Satz  in  den  Beschwdrungsformeln.  ZA  II. 
102,  103. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  721 

Pinches,  T.  G.  —  An  Erechite's  Lament.     RP,  new  series,  I.  84,  85. 
[A  penitential  psalm  with  historical  references;  see  also  BOR  I,  21-23.] 

The   Oracle   of   Ishtar   of  Arbela.      RP   XI.   59-72  ;  also   RP, 

new  series,  V.  129-140. 

Sin-Gashid's  Gift  to  the  Temple  E-Ana.     BOR  I.  S-n.     See 

also  RP,  new  series,  I.  78-83. 

and  E.  A.  W.  Budge.  —  Some   New  Texts  in  the   Babylonian 

Character,  relating  Principally  to  the  Restoration  of  Temples. 
PSBA,  1884.     pp.  179-182. 

Rawlinson,  H.  C. — A  Selection  from  the  Miscellaneous  Inscrip- 
tions of  Western  Asia.  Vol.  IV.  2d  ed.  revised  (and  with 
additions)  by  T.  G.  Pinches.      (London   1891.) 

[This  fourth  volume  of  the  publications  of  tablets  in  the  British  Museum 
is  almost  exclusively  devoted  to  religious  texts.  In  the  other  volumes  some 
texts  of  this  character  will  be  found  as  follows:  Vol.  II.  pis.  17-19,  incan- 
tations; 51-61,  names  and  titles  of  gods  and  temples;   miscellaneous.     Vol. 

III.  pis.  61-65,  astronomical  and  astrological  reports,  omen  tablets  and  por- 
tents ;  66-69,  us^s  and  titles  of  gods  and  temples ;  miscellaneous.  Vol.  V. 
pi.  31,  omen  tablets  (with  explanations)  ;  43,  titles  of  Nebo,  etc. ;  46,  No.  2, 
lists  of  gods  and  their  epithets ;  47,  prayer  (with  commentary)  ;  48,  49,  religious 
calendar;  50,51,  hymn  to  Shamash.  Note  also  that  many  of  the  historical 
texts  in  Vols.  I.-V.  contain  invocations  to  gods.] 

Reisner,  George.  —  Sumerisch-Babylonische  Hymnen  nach  Thon- 
tafeln  Griechischer  Zeit.  (Berlin  1896.)  Konigliche  Museen 
zu  Berlin.  Mittheilungen  aus  den  Orientalischen  Sammlungen 
No.  X. 

Sayce,  A.  H.  —  Accadian  Hymn  to  Istar.      RP  I.  155-160. 

Accadian   Poem  on  the  Seven  Evil  Spirits.     lb.  IX.  144-148. 

An  Accadian  Liturgy.     lb.  III.  125-130. 

An  Accadian  Penitential  Hymn.     lb.  VII.  1 51-156. 

Ancient  Babylonian  Charms.     lb.  III.  145-154. 

[Shurpu  Series,  6th  Tablet.] 

An  Assyrian  Talismanic  Tablet.     BOR  III.  17,  18. 

Babylonian  Augury  by  means  of  Geometrical  Figures.     TSBA 

IV.  302-314. 

Fragment  of  an  Assyrian  Prayer  after  a  Bad  Dream.     RP  IX. 

149-152. 


722  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Sayce,  A.  H.  —  Babylonian  Exorcisms.     lb.  I.  131-135. 

Tables  of  Omens  Furnished  by  Dogs  and  Births.     lb.  V.  167— 
176. 
—  The  Dedication  of  three  Babylonians  to  the  service  of  the  Sun- 
god  at  Sippara.     RP,  new  series,  IV.  109-113. 

[Interpretation  false.] 

The  Overthrow  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah  (Accadian  Account). 

RP  XI.  115-118. 

[Title,  translation,  and  interpretation  alike  fanciful.] 

Two  Accadian  Hymns.     lb.  XI.  129-132. 

-  Two  Hymns  to  the  Sun-god  [in  preface,  pp.  ix.-x.,  to  RP,  new 
series,  IV.,  1S90]. 

[Copious  translations  of  magical  texts,  hymns,  legends,  etc.,  by  Sayce  in 
Hibbert  Lectures  on    'The  Religion  of  the  Ancient  Babylonians.'     London 

1SS7.     See  especially  pp.  441-540.] 

Scheil,  F.  V.  —  Psaume  de  Penitence  Chalde'en  inedit.     RB,  1896, 
75-78. 

-  Legende    Chaldeenne    trouvee    a    El-Amarna    [Adapa].       RR 
Mars-Avril  1891. 

ChoixdesTextes  Religieux  Assyriens.   RHR  XXXVI.  197-207. 

Fragments  de  Poe'sie  lyrique  Babylonienne.      RB  VI.  28-30. 

Fragment  mythologique  avec  mention  de  Uddushu-namir  patesi. 

RT  XX.  62,  63. 

Hymne  Habylonien  avec  metre  tippartent.     ZA  XT.  291-298. 
Schrader,  E.  —  Die  Hollenfahrt  der  Ishtar.     Ein  Altbabylonisches 

Epos.      (Giessen  1874.) 
Smith,  S.  A.--  Miscellaneous  Texts.   (Leipzig  1S87.)  pp.  1-5,  S-10. 
[Portions  of  the  Creation  Series.] 

Strong,  S.  Arthur.  —  A  Prayer  of  Assurbanipal.    RP,  new  series, 
VI.  102-106;  also  9th  ICO  II.  199-208. 

-  Note  on  a  Fragment  of  the  Adapa  Legend.     PSBA  XX.  274- 
279. 

-  On  Some  Oracles  to  Esarhaddon  and  Assurbanipal.     BA   II. 
627-645. 

-  Votisr  Inscriptions.      RP,  new  series,  IV.  90-95. 
-A  Hymn  to  Nebuchadnezzar.      PSBA  XX.  154-162. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  723 

Talbot,  H.  Fox.  —  A  Prayer  and  a  Vision.     TSBA  I.  346-348  and 
RP  VII.  65-68. 

[Ashurbanabal's  prayer  to  Ishtar  and  dream  sent  by  the  goddess.] 

Assyrian  Sacred  Poetry.     RP  III.  131 -138. 

[Prayers  and  incantations.] 

Assyrian  Talismans  and  Exorcisms.     lb.  III.  139-144. 

War  of  the  Seven  Evil  Spirits  Against  Heaven.     lb.  V.  161 -166. 

[Incantation  text.] 

Tallquist,    K.    L.  —  Die    Assyrische    Beschwdrungsserie    Maqlu. 

(Leipzig  1894.) 
Weissbach,  F.  H.  —  Ueber  die  ersten  Tafeln  im  IV.  Bande  Rawlin- 

sons. 

[Announced.] 

Eine  Sumerisch-Assyrische  Beschworungsformel  IV.  Rawl.  16, 

No.    1    in    '  Melanges    Charles    de    Harlez.'       (Leiden    1S96.) 
pp.  360-371. 

Winckler,  H.  and  Abel  Ludwig. —  Thontafelfund  von  El-Amarna. 

(Berlin  1891.) 

[Vol.  III.  pp.  166,  a  and  l>,  Legend  of  Adapa;  see  Erman  in  KAW  Sitz- 
ungsberichte  XXIII.  585;  Lehmann,  ZA  III.  3S0 ;  other  mythological  frag- 
ments, pp.  164-165.] 

Zimmern,    Heinrich.  —  Babylonische    Busspsalmen,    umschrieben, 
iibersetzt  und  erklart.     (Leipzig  1885.)      BA  VI. 
[Also  published  in  part  as  a  thesis.] 

Beitrage  zur   Kenntniss  der  Babylonischen   Religion.       Erste 

Lieferung.      Die  Beschwdrungstafeln  Shurpu.     (Leipzig  1896.) 

AB  XII. 

Zusatzbemerkungen  zur  Legende  von  Adapa.     BA  II.  437,  43S. 

Hexenbeschwdrungen  bei  den  Babylonicrn.     BAZ,   1891,  No. 

337- 
An  Old  Babylonian  Legend  from  Egypt  [Adapa].     SST,  1892, 

No.  25. 


724  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

V. 
Cosmology. 

Barton,  G.  A. —  Tiamat.  JAOS  XV.  1-28;  also  PAOS,  May 
1890,  xiii.-xv. 

Brunengo,  Giuseppe.  —  LTmpero  di  Babilonia  e  di  Ninive.  (2 
vols.  Prato  1885.)  Capo  I.  La  Cosmogonia  de  Caldei  com- 
parata  alia  Mosaica,  pp.  67-85.  Capo  II.  La  Ribellione  degli 
Angeli  e  la  Caduta  del  Uomo,  {i.e.,  Marduk  and  Tiamat  story), 
pp.  86-108.     Capo  IV.  La  Storia  del  Diluvio,  pp.  124-140. 

Budge,  I •'..  A.  W.  --  The  Fourth  Tablet  of  the  Creation  Series,  relat- 
ing to  the  fight  between  Marduk  and  Tiamat.  PSBA  VI.  5-11. 
Fourth  Tablet  of  the  Creation  Series.     PSBA  X.  86  and  six  pis. 

Delitzsch,  Friedrich.  -  -  Texte  zur  Weltschopfung  und  zur  Auf- 
lehnung  und  Bekampfung  der  Schlange  Tiamat.     AL,  3d  ed., 

'-s's5-     PP-  93-99- 

-  Das  Babylonische  Weltschopfungsepos.     (Leipzig  1S96.) 
ENGEL,  MORITZ.  —  Die  Losung  der  Paradiesfrage.     (Leipzig  1885.) 
Halevy,    J. --La    Cosmologie    Babylonienne    d'apres    M.    Jensen. 

RHR  XXII.  180-208. 

[Summary  and  critique  of  Jensen's  '  Kosmologie  der  Babylonier.'  ] 

-  Recherches  Bibliques  -  -  L'Histoire  des  Origines  d'apres  la 
Genese.  Texte,  Traduction  et  Commentaire.  Tome  I.  Genese 
I.-XXV.      (Paris  1895.) 

[Contains  translations  of  the  Babylonian  Cosmological  Texts,  and  discusses 
their  bearings  on  the  0.  T.  narrative.     A  most  suggestive  work.] 

-  Recherches  Bibliques  —  Chapter  28,  La  Creation  et  les  Vicissi- 
tudes du  Premier  Homme.      RS  I.  101-117,  193-202. 

[Transliteration,  translation,  and  discussion  of  the  Babylonian  Creation 
Tablets.] 

Hommel,  F.  -  -  Fine   Neugefundene  Weltschopfungslegcnde.     DR, 

1892,  105-114;    see  also  Neue  Kirchliche  Zeitung,  I.  393  scq., 

II.  89  seq. 

The  Oldest  Cosmogony.      SST,  1894,  No.  7. 
[ensen,  P.        Die   Kosmologie  der  Babylonier.     Studien  und  Mate- 

rialien.     (Strassburg  1890.) 


BIBLIOGRAJ'IIY.  725 

Jensen,  P.  —  Ursprung  unci  Geschichte  des  Tierkreises.     DR,  1890, 

112-1 16. 
Lajard,  F.  —  Fragments  d'un  Memoire  sur  le  Systeme  theogonique 

et  cosmogonique  des  Assyriens  ou  des  Chaldeens  d'Assyrie. 

JA,  2d  Series,  XIV.  1 14-143. 
Laurie,     Thomas.  —  Cuneiform     Inscriptions    and    the     Deluge. 

Bibliotheca  Sacra,  XLII.  165-168. 
Lenormant,  F.  —  Essai  de   Commentaire  sur  les    Fragments  cos- 

mogoniques  de  Berose.     (Paris  1871.) 

[An  elaborate  treatise  on  the  traditions  of  Berosus  in  connection  with  the 
cuneiform  account  of  creation.] 

Loisy,  A.  —  Les  Mythes  Chaldeens   de  la  Creation  et  du  Deluge. 

(Amiens  1892.)      RR,  1896. 
[From  RR,  1S90-1S91.     See  §  I.] 
Lukas,   Fr.  —  Die  Grundbegriffe  in  den  Kosmogonieen  der  Alten 

Volker.      1893.     pp.  1-46. 

[Translations  by  Jensen,  pp.  1-14.     Die  Kosmogonie  der  Babylonier  und 

der  Genesis.] 
Muller,    D.   H.  —  Die    Propheten   in   ihrer   Urspriinglichen    Form. 

(Wien  1895.)     pp.  6-13. 

[Translation  of  considerable  portions  of  the  Babylonian  creation  narratives. 

Follows  Zimmern.] 
Muss-Arnolt,  W.  —  The  Cuneiform  Account  of  the  Creation.     Re- 
vised translation.     BW  III.  17-27. 
— —  A  Comparative  Study  of  the  Translations  of  the  Babylonian 

Creation  Tablets,  with  special  reference  to  Jensen's  '  Kosmolo- 

gie  '  and  Barton's  f  Tiamat.'     H  IX.  6-23. 
Oppert,    J.  —  Fragments     Cosmogoniques    in    Ledrain's    '  Histoire 

d'lsrael.'     (Paris  1882.)     pp.  411-422. 

[Translation  of  Creation  Series  of  tablets  of  deluge.] 

Le  Poeme  Chaldeen  du  Deluge.     (Paris  1885.) 

Die  Fragmente  der  Epopoen  welche  die  Schopfung  und  Sint- 

rluth  nach  babylonischer  Auffassung  betreffen.    Verhandlungen 

Deutscher  Philologen  und  Schulmanner,  XXXIV.  128,  129. 
Traductions    de    quelques    textes   Assyriens.  —  Fragments   des 

Recits  de  la  Creation.  —  Guerre  de  Merodach  et  Tiamat.     4th 
ICO,  229-238. 


726  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Pinches,  T.  G. —  A  Babylonian  Duplicate  of  Tablets  I.  and  II.  of 

the  Creation  Series.      BOR  IV.  25-33. 
The  New  Version  of  the  Creation  Story.     9th  ICO,  1892.     II. 

190-19.S;    also   JRAS,    [891,    393-408;    and  Academy,    1890, 

Nos.  968,  974,  and  the  Times,  1889,  Dec.  16. 
The   Non-Semitic    Version  of  the   Creation   Story.     RP,  new 

series,  VI.  107-1 14. 
SAYCE,  H.  —  The  Assyrian  Story  of  the  Creation.     RP,  new  series, 

I.  122-140. 

Babylonian  Legend  of  the  Creation  RP  XI.  109-114. 

The  Babylonian  Story  of  the  Creation  according  to  the  Tradi- 
tion of  Cutha.     RP,  new  series,  I.  147-153. 
Schrader,   E.  —  Cuneiform  Inscriptions  and   the   Old   Testament. 

(London  18S5.)      I.  1-22. 

[Translation  of   portions  of  the  Creation    Series  with  comments;   third 
German  edition  announced.] 

Smith,  George.  —  The  Chaldaean  Account  of  Genesis.     (2d  ed. 

London    1881.)      German    trans,    ed.   by    Friedrich    Delitzsch 

(Leipzig  1S76),  under  the  title  '  Chaldaeische  Genesis.' 
-  On  Some  Fragments  of  the  Chaldaean  Account  of  the  Creation. 

TSBA  IV.  363,364. 
Stucken,     Ed.     -  Astralmythen     der     Hebraer,     Babylonier     und 

Aegypter.      I.  und  II.  Theil.      (Leipzig  1S96-1897.) 

I  Rather  fanciful.] 

Talbot,  II.  Fox.     -The  Fight  between  Bel  and  the  Dragon.     RP 
IX.  135    140. 

Portion  of  the  Creation  Series.] 

The  Fight  between  Bel  and  the  Dragon  and  the  Flaming  Sword 

which  turned  every  way.      TSBA  V.  1-21. 

The   Chaldaean   Account  of  the   Creation.      RP   IX.  115-118; 

also  TSBA  V.  426-440. 

The  Revolt  in  Heaven,  from  a  Chaldaean  Tablet.      TSBA  IV. 

349-362. 

[Portions  of  the  Creation  Series.] 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  Ill 

Warren,  W.  F.  —  Paradise  Found,  ioed.  (Boston  1893.)  Part  IV. 
chapter  6.  The  Cradle  of  the  Race  in  Akkadian,  Assyrian,  and 
Babylonian  Thought. 

[Suggestive,  but  an  untenable  view.] 

Ward,  W.  Hayes.—  Contest  between  Bel-Merodach  and  the  Dragon. 

PAOS,  May  1879.     X. 
Dragon  and  Serpent  in  Chaldaean  Mythology.      PADS,  Oct. 

1879,  xvn- 

Bel  and  the  Dragon.     AJSL  XIV.  94-105. 

The  Dragon  Tiamat  in  Babylonian  and  Assyrian  Art.     PAOS, 

Oct.  1889,  clxviii-clxix. 
Zimmern,  H.  —  Translations  of  the  Babylonian  Creation  and  Deluge 

Stories  in  Gunkel's  c  Schopfung  und  Chaos,'  pp.  401-42S. 
'  Konig  Tukulti  bel  nisi  und  die  Kuthaische  Schopfungslegende.' 

ZA  XII.  3.7-330. 

[Translation  of  the  Cuthaean  Version  of  the  Creation  Story.J 

VI. 

The  Gilgamesh  Epic 

(including  tlic  Deluge  Story). 

Auler,    C.  —  The    Legends   of   Semiramis   and   the   Nimrod   Epic. 

JHUC,  No.  55. 
Boscawen,    W.    St.    Chad.  —  Hymn   to    Gilgames.       BOR   VII. 

121-125. 

The  Twelfth  Izdubar  Legend.      RP  IX.  131-134- 

Casanowicz,   I.  M.  —  Professor   Haupt's   Nimrod   Epic.      JHUC, 

No.  98. 
Chevxe,  T.  K.  —  Nimrod,  a  Kassite  King.     Academy,  [895,  No.  47. 
De  Lacouperie,  Terrien.—  The  Deluge  Tradition  and  its  Remains 

in  Ancient  Chaldaea.     BOR  pp.  I  5-24,  49-55.  79-8S>  io2-'  l '  • 
Delitzsch,  Friedrich.  —  Article  '  Nimrod  '  in  '  Calwer   Bibellexi- 

kon.' 
Die  Sintflutherzahlung  oder  die  elftc  Tafel  des  Nimrod  Epos. 

AL.      (3d  ed.     Leipzig  1S85.)     99-109. 
Dryoff,  K.  —  Wer  ist  Chadir  ?     ZA  X 1 1 .  3 1 9-327. 


72S  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Grivel,  Josef.  —  Nimrod  et  les  Ecritures  Cuneiformes.  TSBA 
III.  130    144. 

f  Proposed  identification  of  Nimrod  and  Marduk.     See  also  Sayce,  below.] 

Hamilton,  L.  le  Cenci. —  Ishtar  and  Izdubar,  the  Epic  of  Baby- 
lon. Restored  in  modern  verse.  Vol.  I.  Illustrated.  (Lon- 
don 1SS4.) 

Harper,  E.  T. — -The  Legend  of  Etana,  Gilgamos  and  his  Kindred 
in  Eolklore.  Academy,  1891,  No.  995  ;  see  also  Nos.  985,  987, 
988. 

Haupt,  Paul.  —  The  Cuneiform  Account  of  the  Deluge.  OTS, 
(883,  77-85. 

-  Das  babylonische  Nimrodepos.  Keilschrifttext  der  sogenann- 
ten  Izdubarlegenden  mit  dem  Keilinschriftlichen  Sintrluthbe- 
richte,  nach  den  Originalen  im  Britischen  Museum  copiert  und 
herausgegeben.     (Leipzig  1884-1891.)     2  vols.     ABIII. 

Die    zwolfte    Tafel    des    Babylonischen    Nimrodepos.       BA  I. 

48-79. 

-  On  Two  Passages  in  the  Chaldaean  Flood  Tablet.  PAOS, 
March  1894,  CV.-CXI. 

-  ( )n  Some  Passages  in  the  Cuneiform  Account  of  the  Deluge, 
with  special  reference  to  the  first  column  of  the  tablet.  JHUC, 
No.  69. 

—  Ergebnisse  einer  neuen  Collation  der  Izubar  Legenden.     BA  I. 


94-152.     See  Halevy  ZA  IV.  61. 

-  On  the  Dimensions  of  the  Babylonian  Ark.     PAOS,  Oct.  18S8, 
lxxxix.-xc. ;  see  also  AJP  IX.  419-424. 

-  1  >er  Keilinschriftliche  Sintfluthbericht.     Eine  Episode  des  baby- 
lonischen Nimrodepos.     (Leipzig  1SS1.) 

—  Der  Keilschriftliche  Sintfluthbericht.  Umschrift,  Uebersetzung, 
und  Erlauterungen  in  Schrader's  f  Die  Keilinschriften  und  das 
Alte  Testament,'  3d  ed.,  1898. 

[Latest  and  most  satisfactory  translation.] 

Hoffmann,  G. —  Die  Dubar-Sage  und  der  Keilinschriftliche  Sint- 
fluthbericht.     Die  Grenzboten,  Jahrgang  17. 

Hommel,  V.  - Gis-dubarra,  Gibilgamish,  Nimrod.  PSBAXV.291- 
300:   XVI.  13-15. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  729 

Heuzey,    L.  —  La    Lance    Colossale    d'Izbubar   et   les    Nouvelles 

Formeles  de  M.  de  Sarzec.     AI.  Bulletin  1893,  305. 
Jastrow,    Morris,    Jr.  —  The    New    Version    of    the    Babylonian 

Account  of  the  Deluge.     The  Independent,  Feb.  10,  17,  1898. 
Jensen,    P.  —  Gishgimash   (=  Gilgamish)   ein    Kossaer?      ZA  VI. 

340-342. 
Jeremias,  A.  —  Article  '  Izdubar  '  in  Roscher's  f  Ausfiihrliches  Lexi- 

kon  der   Griechischen  und  Rdmischen  Mythologie.'      Vol.   II. 

cols.  773-823. 

Izdubar-Nimrod.     Eine  Altbabylonische  Heldensage  nach  den 

Keilschriftfragmenten    dargestellt.     (Leipzig   1891.)      See   also 
article  by  Quentin  in  RHR  XXXI.  162-177. 

Lenormant,  F.  —  Le  Deluge  etl'Epopee  Babylonienne.  (Paris  1873.) 
Lidzbarski.  —  Zu   den    Arabischen    Alexandergeschichten.       ZA 
VIII.  263-312.     See  also  ib.,  317-319. 

Wer  ist  Chadhir?     ZA  VII.  104-116. 

Meissnek,  Bruno.  —  Alexander  und  Gilgamos.     (Leipzig  1894.) 

Einige     Bemerkungen    zur    Erklarung    des    Sintrluthberichtes. 

ZA  III.  417-421. 

•  Menant,  J.  — -  Le  Deluge.     Noe  dans  l'arche.     (Paris  18S0.) 

Moor,  Fl.  —  De  la  Geste  de  Gilgames  confrontee  avec  la  Bible  et 
avec  les  Documents  Historiques  indigenes.     M,  June  1897. 

Muss-Arnolt,  W.  —  The  Chaldaean  Account  of  the  Deluge.  A 
revised  translation.     B W  III.  109-1 18. 

Remarks  Introductory  to  a  Comparative  Study  on  the  Transla- 
tions of  the  Deluge  Tablets.  PAOS,  April  1892,  cxc.-cxcv.; 
also  JHUC,  No.  98. 

Offord,  J.  —  A  New  Fragment  of  the  Babylonian  Deluge  Story. 
PSBA  XX.  53,  54. 

[Scheil's  tablet  from  Sippara.] 

Oppert,  J.  — The  Chaldaean  Perseus.     BOR    V.   1,  2;    also  CR, 

1890,  464,  465. 

[Identification  of  Izdubar-Gilgamesh  with  Gilgamos  in  Aelian's  zoological 
work  '  De  Natura  Animalium,'  XII.  21.  See  also  Sayce  in  the  Academy,  1S90, 
No.  966;  Ward,  ib.,  No.  971  ;  and  Kohler,  ib.,  1891,  No.  985.] 

Nimrod.      Bulletin  de  1'AtheruSe  <  Mientale,  1873,  Jan. -Feb. 


730  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

(  >ppert,  J.  —  Le  Poeme  Chaldeen  du  Ddluge.    Traduit  de  l'Assyrien. 

(Paris  1885.) 
Pinches,  T.  G.       Exit  Gishtubar.     BOR  IV,  264. 

[  Proposal  to  read  the  name  of  the  Babylonian  hero  Gilgamesh.     Cf.  Sayce 
in  Academy,  1890,  No.  966,  and  Ward,  ib.,  No.  971.] 

RAWLINSON,    H.    C.  —  The    Izdubar    Legends.      Athenaeum,   1872, 

No.  2354. 
Rociii  1  11.  Raoul.  —  Memoire  sur  l'Hercule  Assyrien  et  Phenicien. 

A I  Memoires,  2mc  Partie,  XVII.  9-3 74- 
Sauveplane,  F.  —  Une  Epopee  Babylonienne.     Ishtubar-Gilgames. 

(  Paris  1894.) 
SAYCE,  A.  H.  —  On  Nimrod  and  the  Assyrian  Inscription.     TSBA 

I  I.  .:4s,  249;  see  also  Academy,  1893,  No.  1054. 

[  Proposed  identification  of  Nimrod  with  Amar-ud  =  Marduk,  the  head  of 

the  Babylonian  Pantheon.] 

The    Higher    Criticism    and    the    Verdict  of    the   Monuments. 

(London   1894.)     pp.  97-119. 
S<  111:11. ,    F.  V.  -  -  Notes  d'Epigraphie  et  d'Archeologie  Assyrienne. 

XXX.       Un    Fragment   d'un    Nouveau    Recit    du    Deluge    de 

I'Epoque  du  Roi  Ammizaduga.     RT  XX.  55-59  ;  see  also  RB, 

1898,  5-9. 

-  The   New  Babylonian  Account  of  the  Deluge.     The  Independ- 
ent, Jan.  20,  1898. 

Smith,  GEORGE.--The  Chaldaean  Account  of  the  Deluge.     TSBA 
II.  203-234. 

-  The  Eleventh  Tablet  of  the  Izdubar  Legends.     The  Chaldaean 
Account  of  the  Deluge.     TSBA  III.  530-596;  also  RP  VII.  133. 

Si  ESS,  I'h.    -Die    Sintlluth    in   'Das   Antlitz  der   Erde.'     (Leipzig 
18S3.)     pp.  25-98. 

I  Discussion  of  the  Babylonian  tale  with  notes  by  Prof.  Paul  llaupt.] 

Talbot,  II.  Fox.  —  Ishtar  and  Izdubar,  being  the  6th  Tablet  of  the 
Izdubar    Series.         Translated    from    the    Cuneiform.        TSBA 
V.  97-121  ;   also  RP  IX.  1 19-128. 
-  Commentary  on  the  Deluge  Tablet.     TSBA  I  V.  49-83. 
Tablet  in  the  British  Museum   Relating  Apparently  to  the  Del- 
uge.    TSBA  I  V.  1  29-131 . 

1  dbot's  supposition  i->  ei  roneous.] 


BIBLIO  GRA  PJI V.  731 

VII. 

Beliefs,  Legends,  Ethics,  and  Special   Phrases  of   the  Religion. 

Ader,  Cyrus.  —  The  Views  of  the  Babylonians  Concerning  Life 
after  Death.  AR,  1888,  92-101  ;  see  also  LAOS,  Oct.  18S7, 
ccxxxviii.-ccxliii. 

Ball,  C.J.  —  Glimpses  of  Babylonian  Religion.  I.  Human  Sacri- 
fices.    II.  The  Gods  and  Their  Images.     PSBA  XIV.  149-162. 

Bonavia,  E.  —  The  Sacred  Trees  of  the  Assyrian  Monuments. 
BOR  III.  7-12,  35-40,  56-61  ;  see  also  IV.  95,  96. 

The  Sacred  Trees  of  Assyria.     9th  ICO,  pp.  245-257. 

[Arguments  not  conclusive.] 

Boscawen,  W.  St.  Chad.  —  Notes  on  the  Religion  and  Mythology 

of  the  Assyrians.     TSBA  IV.  267-301. 
.  Texts  Bearing  on  the  Belief  in  Immortality.     (1)    12th  Izdubar 

Tablet.      (2)    Descent    of    Ishtar.      (3)    7th    Izdubar    Tablet. 

(4)   Hymn  to  Marduk.     BOR  IV.  251-254. 

Babylonian  Witchcraft.      ET,  189S,  228-230. 

Notes  on  Assyrian  Religion  and  Mythology.      TSI5A  VI.  535- 

542. 

[Translations  of  some  religious  texts.     General  remarks.] 

Babylonian  Teraphim.     BOR  I.  39,  40. 

. The  Babylonian  Legend  of  the   Serpent  Tempter.      BOR   IV. 

251-255. 

Oriental  Eschatology  (Egypt  and  Chaldaea).      BOR  \  1.  3S-42. 

. The  Plague  Legends  of  Chaldaea.      BOR  I.  11-14- 

Clermont-  Gaxxf.au.  L'Enfer    Assyrien.       RAr,     2d    Series, 

XXXVIII.  33 7-349- 
Craig,   James    A.  — The    Babylonian    Ishtar    Epic.       OTS    VIII. 

249-256. 
Goesslin-g,  E.  —  Die  Holle  nach  Babylonisch-Assyrischer  Anschau- 

un<r.     TZ,  1S95,  No.  3. 
Halevv,  J.—  L'Immortalite  de  l'Ame  chez  les  Peuples  Semitiques. 
RAr,  2d  Series,  XLIV.  44-53- 

[Translation  and  discussion  of  Ishtar's  descent  into  the  nether  world.] 


732  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Halevy,  J. —  Le  Rapt  de  Persephone  ou  Proserpine  par  Pluton 
chez  les  Babyloniens.     R.S  I.  372-376. 

Haug,  M.  -Die  (Jnsterblichkeit  der  Seele  bei  den  Chaldaern. 
BAZ,  1  <S  7  5 ,  Nos.  70,  71. 

Heuzey,  L!  —  Mythes  Chaldeens.     RA,  3d  Series,  XXVI.  295-30S. 

Hilprecht,  H.  V.  —  Serpent  and  Tree  in  Babylonian  Records. 
SSI',  [893,  No.  52. 

IIiv  K.S,  Edward.  —  On  the  Assyrian  Mythology.  RIA  Memoirs, 
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Hommel,  F.  -  Hexenverbrennungen  im  alten  Babylonien.  Miin- 
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J  vstrow,  Morris,  Jr.  —  The  Ethicsof  the  Babylonians  and  Assyri- 
ans,   er  in.  65-77. 

The  Babylonian  Term  Shu'alu.     AJSL  XIV.  165-170. 

Jensen,  Peter.-- The  Queen  in  the  Babylonian  Hades  and  Her 
Consort.      SST,  1897,  Nos.  11,  12. 

The  Supposed  Babylonian  Origin  of  the  Week  and  the  Sab- 
bath.     SST,  1892,  No.  3. 

Jeremias,  A.  — ■  Die  Babylonisch-Assyrischen  Vorstellungen  vom 
Leben  nach  dem  Tode.     (Leipzig  1S97.) 

Articles  '  Arallu  '  and  '  Etana.' 

[Announced   to  appear   in  the  supplement   to    Reseller's  '  Ausfiihrliches 
l.exikon  der  Griechischen  und  Romischen  Mythologie.'] 

KlESEWETTER,  Carl.  —  Der  Occultismus  des  Alterthums.  (Leipzig 
[896.)  Book  I.  364  seq.,  '  Der  Occultismus  bei  den  Akkadern, 
Babyloniern,  Chaldaern  und  Assyriern.' 

[  Based  largely  upon  Lenormant's  'Clialdaean  Magic.'] 

Lai  ici  nt,  A. —  La  Magie  et  la  Divination  chezles  Chaldeo-Assyriens. 

(  Paris  f894.) 
Lenormant,  F.  —  La  Legende  de  Semiramis.     (Paris  1872.) 
[A  transformed  [shtar  legend.] 

Oppert,  J.—  LTmmortalite'  de  1'Ame  chez  les  Chaldeens.  (Paris 
18750 

nslation  of  Isl.tar's  descent  into  the  nether  worUl.] 

The  Messianic  tdeaamong  the  Early  Babylonians 

and  Assyrians.      Academy,  1887,  Nos.  816,  Si S,  820. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  733 

Ravenshaw,  E.  C.  —  On  the  Winged  Bulls,  Lions,  and  Other  Sym- 
bolical Figures  from  Nineveh.     JRAS,  1854,  93-1  17. 

[Contains  some  interesting  suggestions  on  Babylonian  mythology,  but  the 
paper  as  a  whole  is  antiquated.] 

Sayce,  A.  H.  —  Ancient  Babylonian  Moral  and  Political  Precepts. 

RP  VII.  1 19-122. 
The  Babylonian   Legend  of  the  Creation  of  Man.     Academy, 

1893,  No.  1055. 

Babylonian  Folk-Lore.     FLJ  I.  16-22. 

Scheil,   Fr.  V.  —  Relief  Cisele  representant  une  Scene  Fune"raire 

Babylonienne.      RT  XX.  59-62. 

Le  Culte  de  Gudea.     RT  XVIII.  64-74. 

Talbot,  H.  Fox.  —  On  the  Religious  Belief  of  the  Assvrians.     Nos. 

I.,  II.,  III.,  IV.     TSBA  I.  106-115;  H.29-79,346-352. 

[No.  I.  contains  text  and  translation  of  two  prayers;  Nos. II.  and  III.,  Incan- 
tation Texts;  No.  IV.,  Future  Punishment  of  the  Wicked.] 

Legend  of  the  Descent  of  Ishtar.     RP  I.  141-149. 

Revised  Translation  of  the   Descent  of   Ishtar  with  a   Further 

Commentary.     TSBA  III.  1 18-135.     Addenda  pp.  357-360. 

Thureau-Daugin,  F.  —  Le  Culte  des  Rois  dans  la  Periode  Pre- 
babylonienne.     RT  XIX.  185-187. 

Tiele,  C.  P.  —  Cyrus  de  Groote  en  de  Godsdienst  van  Babel  in  '  Me- 
langes, Charles  de  Harlez '  (Leiden  1896),  307-312. 

Tyler,  Thomas.  —  The  Babylonian  Idea  of  a  Disembodied  Soul. 
BOR  I.  55-57. 

Tylor,  Edward  B.  —  The  Winged  Figures  of  the  Assyrians  and 
Other  Ancient  Monuments.  PSBA  XII.  383-393;  see  also 
RHR  XXII.  209-220. 

[Explanation  of  the  symbols  on  Assyrian  sculptures.] 

Ward,  W.  H.  —  On  the   Representation  of  the  Solar  Disk.     AJT 

II.  115-118. 
Warren,  W.  F.  —  Gates   of    Sunrise  in   Ancient   Babylonian    Art. 

BOR  III.  241-244. 
Zimmern,  PL  —  Vater,  Sohn  und  Fiirsprecher  in  der  Babylonischen 
Gottesvorstellung.      (Leipzig  [896.) 
[See  review  by  Jastrow,  AJT  I.  468-474.] 


734  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

VIII. 

Temples  and  Cult. 

Hall,  C.  J.  —  Glimpses  of  Babylonian  Religion.  I.  Human  Sacri- 
fices.    II.   The  Gods  and  Their  Images.    PSBA  XIV.  149-162. 

BOSCAWEN,  \V.  St.  Chad. --The  Babylonian  and  Jewish  Festivals. 
BOR  IV.  34-38. 

I  ('Alviella,  GOBLET.  —  Des  Symboles  qui  ont  influence  la  Repre- 
sentation figure'e  des  Pierres  Comiques  chez  les  Semites.  KIIK 
XX.  135-150. 

JEREMIAS,  JOHANN.  —  Die  Cultustafel  von   Sippar.      BA  I.  267-92. 

[An  important  archive  of  the  Shamash  temple  at  Sippar,  illustrative  of 
the  cult.] 

Karppe,  S.  --Melanges  de  Critique  Biblique  et  d'Assyriologie. 
RS  II.  1 46- 1  51 . 

[The  Babylonian  festival  Zagmuk  and  the  Biblical  New  Year.] 

Koldewey,    Robert.-- Die   altbabylonischen    Graber  in   Surghul 
und  El  Ilibba.     ZA  II.  403-430. 
[Funeral  customs.] 

Km  [it,  A.  —  The  Talmudic  Records  of  the  Persian  and  Babylonian 
Festivals    critically    illustrated.      AJSL    XIV.    182-194.       See 
also  REJ  XXIV.  256-271. 
[Insufficient  discussion.] 

Menant. --Les    Sacrifices  sur   les   Cylindres    Chaldeens.     Gazette 

Archeologique,  1883,  Nos.  7-9. 
PERROT  &  Chipiez.  -    A    History  of  Art  in   Chaldaea  and  Assyria. 

(London    18S4.)       Eng.    trans.       Vol.    I.    chapters     111.,     IV. 
[Temples  and  Tombs.] 

PETERS,  J.  1'.  Nippur.  Explorations  and  Adventures  on  the 
Euphrates.  Vol.  II.  chapter  V.,  The  Oldest  Temple  in  the 
World.      Chapter  VIII.,  Coffins  and  burial  Customs. 

Pinches,  T.  G.    -  Sin-Gashid's   Endowment  of  the  Temple  E-ana. 
RP,  new  series,  I.  78  83.     See  also  BOR  1.  S-n. 
A  Fragment  of  a  Babylonian  Tithe  List.     lb.  I.  76-78. 
Gifts  to  a  Babylonian  Bitili  or  Bethel.     //'.  II.  142-145. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  735 

Rawlinson,   H.   C.  —  On  the  Birs  Nimrud,  or  the   (heat    Temple 

of  Borsippa.     JRAS,  1861,  1-24. 
Reber,  F.  —  Ueber  altchaldaische  Kunst.  .-  .  .     Der  Tempelbau.    ZA 

I.  149-164. 
Savce,  A.  H.  —  A  Babylonian  Saint's  Cylinder.     RP  VII.  157-170. 

[Days  sacred,  and  otherwise,  of   the  month  of   Elul,  with  directions  for 
religious  ceremonies  to  be  observed.] 

On  Human  Sacrifice  among  the  Babylonians.  TSBA  IV.  25-31. 

Tiele,  C.  P.  —  De  Hoofdtempel  van  Babel  en  die  van  Borsippa. 
KAW  Afdeeling  '  Letterkunde  '  (1886)  3^  Reeks  Deel  III;  also 
in  German  ZA  II.  179-190. 

Tristram,  H.  B.  —  Sacrifices  in  Babylonia  and  Phoenicia.  SST, 
1894,  No.  1. 

Ward,  W.  H.  —  On  Some  Babylonian  Cylinders,  supposed  to  Rep- 
resent Human  Sacrifices.     PAOS,  May  1888,  xxviii.-xxx. 

IX. 
Bearings  on  the  Old  Testament;   General  Influence. 

Anz,  Wilhelm.  —  Zur  Frage  nach  dem  Ursprung  des  Gnostizismus. 
(Leipzig  1897.)     pp.  58-112,  Die  Herkunft  .  .  .  aus  Babylonien. 

Ball,  C.  J.  —  The  First  Chapter  of  Genesis  and  the  Babylonian 
Cosmogonies.     PSBA  XVIII. 

Bonnett,  E. Les  Decouvertes  Assyriennes  et  le  Livre  de  la  Genese. 

(Paris  1884.) 

Boscawen,  W.  St.  Chad.  —  The  Bible  and  the  Monuments.  (Lon- 
don 1895.) 

Brandt,  W. Die  Assyrisch-Babylonische  Keilschriftliteratur  und 

das  Alte  Testament.     Deutsch-evang.   Blatter,  1884.     Heft  3. 

pp.  164-187. 
Brown,    Francis.  —  Critical    review   with    valuable    comments   of 
E.  Schrader's  'Die  Keilinschriften  und    das  Alte  Testament.' 

AJP  IV.  338-343- 
The    Sabbath    in    the    Cuneiform   Records.     PR,    1882,    688- 

700. 
Assyriology  :     Its  Use  and   Abuse  in   Old  Testament   Study. 

(New  York  1885.) 


BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Brown,   Robert,  Jr.  —  Semitic  Influence  in    Hellenic  Mythology. 
(London   [898.) 

I  I' ut  1 II.  discusses  Babylonian  Influence.] 

Buddensieg,    R.    -Die   Assyrischen  Ausgrabungen    und    das  Alte 

Testament.     (Heilbronn  1880.) 
Delitzsch,  Friedrich.  —  Wo  Lag  das  Paradies?    Line  Biblisch- 

Assyriologische  Studie.     (Leipzig  1881.) 

(See  Francis  Brown.    OTS  IV.  1-12.] 
Evetts,  B.  A. —  New    Light   on    the    Bible  and    the    Holy  Land. 

(London  1892.) 
Gruppe,  O. --Die  Griechischen  Kulte  und  Mythen  in  ihren  Bezie- 

hungen  zu  den  Orientalischen  Religionen.     (Leipzig  1887.) 
Gunkel,  H.  —  Schopfung  und  Chaos  in  Urzeit  und  Lndzeit.     (Got- 

tingen  1895.) 

[A  most  important  discussion  of  the  relationship  of  the  Biblical  creation 
narratives  to  the  Babylonian  cosmology.] 

IIai.iay,  J.  —  Recherches  Bibliques.      (Paris  1896.) 

Haupt,    Paul.--Wo  Lag  das  Paradies?     Ueber  Land  und  Meer, 

[894-1895,  No.  15. 

[Also   syllabus   of    lectures   before  the   Gratz    College    of    Philadelphia, 
Dec.   10,  1895,  on 'The  Site  of   Paradise  and  the  Nimrod  Epic.'] 

Jastrow,  Morris,  Jr. -- The  Bible  and  the  Assyrian  Monuments. 
The  Century  Magazine,  XLVII.  395-411. 

I  li. instated   into  French  by  E.  Lacordaire  in   Revue  des  Revues,   1S94 

227-235.]- 

The    Original    Character    of  the  Hebrew  Sabbath.     AJT    II. 

312-352. 

[Relationship  between  Hebrew  and  Babylonian  Sabbath.] 

Adam  and  Lve  in  Babylonian  Literature. 

[Announced.] 

J 1  NSEN,  P.     -The  Cult  of  Ashera  and  the  Cult  of  Mary. 

[Announced  to  appear  in  the  Sunday  School  Times,  1S98.] 

Kessler,   K.    -Ueber  Gnosis  und  Altbabylonische    Religion.     5th 

[<  O,  II.  Pari  I.  2S8-305. 
Ki  i.iAi  k,  M.  L.-    The   Deluge  in  the   Izdubar  Epic  and  the  Old 
Testament. 

[Reprinted  from  the  Church  Review,  November,  iSSS.] 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  737 

Lacouperie,  T.  de.  —  Origin  from  Babylonia  and  Elarn  of  the 
Early  Chinese  Civilization.  Series  of  articles  in  the  BOR 
III.-VIII. 

[Also  in  book  form  under  the  title, '  Origin  of  Early  Chinese  Civilization  and 
its  Western  Sources.'  (London  1894.)  Lacouperie's  method  is  unsatisfactory. 
The  theory,  however,  merits  further  investigation.] 

Lotz,  W.  —  Quaestiones  de  Historia  Sabbati.     (Leipzig  1883.) 
Lyon,  D.  G.  —  Assyrian  Study  :   Its  Bearing  on  the  Old  Testament. 

The  Christian  Register,  1885,  Nos.  15,  16. 
Menant,  J.  —  Remarques  sur  un   Cylindre  du   Musee  Britannique. 

La  Bible  et  les  Cylindres  Chaldeens.     CR,  1879,.  270-286. 

[Discussion  of  a  scene  on  a  cylinder  supposed  to  represent  the  first  human 

pair  and  the  serpent.] 

Meyer,  Ed.  —  Der  Babylonische  Einfluss  auf  Judenthum  und  Chri- 

stenthum.      BAZ,  1894,  No.  344. 
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des  Chaldeens  et  des  Dates  de  la  Genese.     APC,  6th  series, 

XIII.  237-240. 
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Beliefs.     Tehom  and  Tiamat,  Hades  and  Satan  :  a  Comparative 

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d' Alexandre  ...  II.     Les  Regions  Syro-Babyloniens  et  l'Eran. 

(Paris  1896.) 

[Unsatisfactory,  and  not  based  on  independent  researches.] 

Sayce,  A.  H.  —  The  Higher  Criticism  and  the  Verdict  of  the  Monu- 
ments.     (London  1894.) 

[Suggestive,  but  unreliable.     Full  of  inaccuracies.] 

Fresh   Light  from  the  Ancient  Monuments.     (2d  ed.     London 

1886.) 

Schleussner.  —  Die  Bedeutung  der  Ausgrabungen  in  dem  Euphrat- 
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Schrader,  E.  —  Die  Keilinschriften  und  das  Alte  Testament.  3d  ed. 
(Announced  for  1898.) 

[English  translation  of  the  2d  German  ed.,  '  The  Cuneiform  Inscriptions 
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738  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

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[Rather  fanciful.] 

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studiimi.     (Vienna  1884.) 


INDEX. 


•  :•   .,  i- 


A,  or  Malkatu,  her  names  and  their 
explanation,  74  ;  position  and  re- 
lationship to  Shamash,  74-5,  176, 
685;  temples  of  A  and  Shamash 
in  Larsa  and  Borsippa,  70,  241; 
temple  E-edinna  in  Sippar,  640. 

Ab,  5th  month,  sacred  to  Nin-gish- 
zida,  462,  547;  "the  mission  of 
Ishtar,"  564;  festival  of  Ishtar, 
685. 

Abram  and  Abraham,  followers  of, 
in  fight  with  Babylon,  2;  cult  of 
Father  Abraham,  562. 

Abu-Habba,  excavations,  10;  see 
also  Sippar  ;  temple  records  and 
legal  documents,  165. 

Abu-Shahrein  =  Eridu. 

Abydenus,  source  for  B.-A.  religion, 

J.  5- 
Achaemenian  inscriptions,  16. 
Ad,  Arabic  tribe,  496. 
i«'(((/=  Ramraan,   157;    solar  deity 

of  Syria,  156. 
Adam,    parallelism    betw.     A.    and 

Eabani,  511;  parallelism  betw.  A. 

and  Adapa,  552. 
Ada/a  Legend,  a  nature  myth,  548, 

544  ff.  ;  found  on  El-Amarna 
tablets,  544;  Adapa,  son  of  Ea, 
545;  A.  fighting  the  south  wind, 

545  ff. ;    seconded    by    Tammuz 


and  Gish-zida,  548-9;  identified 
with  Marduk,  54S;  Adapa  myth 
compared  with  3d  chapter  of  Gen- 
esis, 551. 

Adar,  1 2th  month,  sacred  to  the 
Seven  Evil  Spirits,  463;  15th 
day,  sacred  to  Shamash,  Malkatu, 
and  Bunene,  685;  compared  with 
Purim,  686. 

Adar,  2d  (intercalated),  sacred  to 
Ashur,  463. 

Addu,  equivalent  of  Ramman,  156. 

Adon,  Phoenician  equivalent  for 
Tammuz;  see  Tammuz. 

Adra-Khasis,  epithet  of  I'arnapish- 
tim,  505. 

Aelian,  historian,  mentions  Gilga- 
mesh,  469,  524. 

Agade,  ancient  center,  35,  245  ; 
rulers,  36;  temple  E-ul-mash  of 
Nana,  825  temple  of  Anunit-Ishtar, 
117,242;  zikkurat  E-an-dadia,  639. 

Agriculture,  A.  and  calendar,  462. 

Agum,  see  Agumkakrimi. 

Agumkakrimi,  king  of  Babylon,  re- 
covers tlie  statues  of  Marduk  and 
Sarpanitum,  122,  152,  670,  687; 
cult  of  Shamash.  141;  cult  of  Shu- 
kamuna,  162;  institutes  special 
festival  f<>r  Marduk  and  Sarpani- 
tum, 6S7. 


740 


IXDEX. 


Ahasverus,  the  wandering  Jew,  = 
Parnapishtim,  515. 

Ai-ibur-shaM,  name  of  street  in 
Babylon,  679. 

An  u,  2d  month,  sacred  to  Ea,  462, 
677;  1 2U1  clay  of  A.,  sacred  to 
Gula,  683;  installation  of  king 
Ashurbanabal,  684;  sacred  in 
Assyria,  684;  10th  day  of  A., 
sacred  to  Shamash,  Malkatu,  and 
Bunene,  685. 

A-isktu,  a  foreign  god,  644. 

Akitu,  see  Zag-muk  :  festival,  679. 

Akkad,  see  also  Sinner  and  Akkad ; 
=  babylonia,  176,  532. 

Akkadian  =  Sumerian. 

A/a/a,  deity,  417;  in  incantations, 
417;  in  Allatu's  court,  593;  con- 
sort of  Belili,  589;  connection 
with  Alalia,  589. 

Alalia,  a  bird;  relations  to  Ishtar, 
482,  589;  connection  with  deity 
Alala,  589. 

Alamu,  phase  of  Nergal,  280. 

Alexander  Polyhistor,  source  for 
B.  A.  religion,  1,  5,  413. 

Alexander  the  Great,  probably  con- 
temporary of  Berosus,  1  ;  A.  and 
( rilgamos,  469,  516. 

Alexandria,  gnostic  center,  699. 

Allatu,  goddess,  1st  Bab.  period, 
originally  associated  with  Bel, 
104;  associated  with  Nin-azu, 
586,  590;  associated  with  Nergal, 
104,  183,  565,  580,  583,  593;  god- 
dess of  subterranean  cave,  104, 
282,  511,  565,  580;  in  incanta- 
tions, 282;  =Nin-ki-gal,  2S2,  cf. 
584;  Namtar,  her  messenger,  570, 
580,  587,  592  ;  l'elit-seri,  her  scribe, 
5S7;     pictured     as     a     lion,     580; 


Allatu's  court,  5S7,  592 ;  author- 
ess of  evil  and  disease,  593; 
called  Eresh-kigal,  5S4  (cf  282) ; 
vanquished  by  Nergal,  584-5 ; 
imitation  of  Tiamat-Marduk  epi- 
sode, 585;  correlated  to  Ishtar, 
goddess  of  fertility,  587  ;  explana- 
tion of  name,  5S7. 

All-Souls1  Day,  see  under  Tammitz 
and  Dead,  599,  605,  682. 

Altar,  description  of,  651  ;  the 
"  horns  "  of  the  altar  compared 
with  those  of  Hebrew  and  Phoeni- 
cian altars,  652. 

Alu-usharshid,  king  of  Kish,  54. 

Amalgamation  of  divinities,  cause, 
features,  and  results,  74-5,  94-5. 

Amanus,  district  famous  for  its 
wood,  627. 

Amiaud,  his  attempt  at  a  genea- 
logical arrangement  of  Old  Bab. 
pantheon,  108. 

Am-na-na,  in  proper  names  of  the 
2d  Bab.  period,  169. 

Amraphel=  Hammurabi,  534. 

Amulets,  see  Talisman,  Teraphim, 
672,  674. 

A  until m,  goddess,  consort  of  Ami, 

153- 

Animism,  starting-point  of  religious 
belief,  48;  survivals  of,  1S0  ff., 
457  ;  popular  rather  than  theolog- 
ical, 187. 

A  us  liar,  god,  in  the  cosmology,  197, 
410,  417;  =Ashur,  197,  414- 
5  ;  A.  and  Kishar  created,  197, 
410;  builds  Ksharra,  19S;  A.  and 
Kishar  intermediate  betw.  the 
monsters  and  the  gods  in  cos- 
mology, 414,  416;  Anshar  and 
Kishar    in  the   creation   epic  and 


INDEX. 


741 


their  meaning,  418;  conquers 
Tiamat  (one  version),  422. 

Anshar-gal,  cosmological  deity,  417. 

Antar,  Arabian  romance  of  A.,  494. 

Antares,  observations  of,  372. 

Antioch,  gnostic  center,  699. 

AntiocJuts  Soter,  cult  of  Marduk  and 
Nabu,  650. 

Ami,  god,  51  ;  relationship  to  Ish- 
tar,  84-5;  Der,  city  of  Anu,  88, 
155,  162;  god  of  heavenly  ex- 
panse, 89,  147,  207,  432;  abstract 
conception,  89;  priest  of  Anu,  90; 
Anu  as  term  for  '  lofty,'  90  ;  mem- 
ber of  the  great  triad,  107,  152, 
155,  207,  677;  in  Lugalzaggisi's 
pantheon,  110;  artificial  char- 
acter in  Hammurabi's  pantheon, 
1 52 ;  position  in  Agum's  pan- 
theon, 152;  dwells  in  Uruk,  53; 
Anatum,  his  consort,  153;  in  Ass. 
pantheon,  153-5,  201,  207;  asso- 
ciated with  Ramman,  1 54,  207, 
212;  associated  with  Dagan,  154, 
209 ;  disappears  after  Sargon, 
1 55  ^  in  religious  texts,  156;  in 
Nebuchadnezzar's  I.  pantheon, 
162;  father  of  Anunnaki  and 
Igigi,  1S6,  207,  593;  fighting  Tia- 
mat, 197  ;  temple  in  Lagash,  53, 
640;  temple  at  Ashur,  207;  suc- 
ceeded by  Ashur,  207;  associated 
with  Ishtar,  207 ;  blesses  handi- 
work, 208,  237;  associated  with 
Bel  and  Belit,  226-7;  Anu  and 
Ishtar,  names  of  the  west  gates  of 
Sargon's  II.  palace,  237  ;  associated 
with  Nusku,  277,  286;  made  god 
of  heavenly  expanse,  432  ;  "  Way 
of  Anu  "  =  ecliptic  of  sun,  457; 
pole    star     of    the    ecliptic,    460; 


Nisan,  sacred  to  A.  and  Bel,  462, 
677  ;  Tebet,  sacred  to  A.,  Papsu- 
kal,  and  Ishtar,  463;  2d  Ululu, 
sacred  to  Anu  and  Bel,  463;  in 
the  Adapa  myth,  546  ff. 

Auiiiiit,  goddess,  51  ;  a  variant  of 
Ishtar,  82,  85,  242 ;  in  proper 
names  of  2d  Bab.  period,  169; 
worshipped  at  Agade,  117,  242; 
shrine  in  E-babbara  at  Sippar, 
646. 

Anunnaki,  explanation  of  name, 
184;  number  of,  and  its  explana- 
tion, 1S5;  spirits  of  earth,  1S5, 
593!  gods  in  whose  service  the 
A.  are,  186;  their  character,  186; 
associated  with  Igigi,  186,  593; 
altar  of  A.  and  Igigi,  186;  shining 
chiefs  of  Eridu,  186;  ruled  by 
Ishtar,  204  (cf.  502);  Anu,  their 
chief,  186,  207,  593;  Bel,  king  of 
all  the  A.,  222;  associated  with 
the  great  triad,  236;  created  by 
Marduk,  447;  offspring  of  Anu, 
593;  A.  and  Mammitum  deter- 
mine death  and  life,  493;  in  the 
deluge  story,  500,  502  {cf.  204)  ; 
in  Allatu's  court,  593. 

Apollodorus,  source  for  B.-A.  reli- 
gion, 1,5. 

Apotheosis,  see  Deification. 

Apsu,  the  deep,  personified  ocean, 
411,  443,  489,  580;  synonymous 
with  Tiamat,  41 1;  male  principle, 
411;  dominion  of  A.  and  Tiamat 
precedes  that  of  the  gods,  412; 
gods,  product  of  the  union  of  A. 
and  Tiamat,  413;  mythical  mon- 
sters, product  of  the  union  of  A. 
and  Tiamat,  414;  basin,  a  sacred 
object  and  symbol,  653  ;  compari- 


742 


INDEX. 


son  with  the  "  sea  "  in   Solomon's 

temple,  653. 
Arabia,  metals  and  stone  exported, 

627. 
Arabians  invade    Mesopotamia,  34, 

39- 
Arakh-skamnu,  8th   month,  sacred 

to  Marduk,  463,  678,  686;  15th 
day,  sacred  to  Shamash,  Malkatu, 
and  Bunene,  685. 

A>  ah),  the  nether-world,  489,  557; 
called  E-kur  or  mountain  house, 
558;  distinction  betw.  Aralii,  the 
mountain  (=  earth),  and  Aralii, 
the  district  of  the  dead  proper, 
55S;  names  and  epithets  of  A., 
563,  592  ;  pictorial  representation 
of,  579  ff.;  pantheon  of,  5S2  ff. 

Arbela,  temple  of  Ishtar,  202-3,  205, 
651  ;  meaning  of  name,  203;  theo- 
logical center,  342,  651. 

Archaeological  religious  monuments, 
14. 

Architecture,  reed  and  clay  materials 
for  building,  495-6;  see  Temple. 

Ardi-Ea,  ferryman  of  Parnapishtim, 
491;  takes  Gilgamesh  to  the 
fountain  of  life,  509. 

Ark,  see  Ship. 

Ark  of  the  covenant  compared  with 
the  Babylonian  ship  for  the  gods, 

655- 
Armenia,  legend  <>f  Rustem  parallel 

to   Etana  legend,  520  ff.;  exports 

precious  stones,  627. 
Arts,  patron  gods,  177-8. 
Aruru,    goddess,  creates    mankind, 

together  with   Marduk,  448,  474; 

ites   Eabani,  \  [8,  474  ;  =  =  Ish- 

448  9  :    1  r<  ates    <  tilgamesh, 

473-4- 


Ashera  compared  with  tree  worship 
in  Babylonia,  689. 

Ashur,  capital  of  Assyria,  42,  193, 
651;  modern  name  Kalah-Sher- 
gat,  198;  temple  to  Ashur,  198, 
651;  temple  to  Ishtar,  205; 
temple  to  Anu,  207;  temple  to 
Shamash,  209;  temple  to  ]>el, 
225;  temple  to  Ea,  230;  intellec- 
tual center,  651. 

Ashur,  god,  consort  of  Belit,  150, 
226,  66S;  rivaled  by  Ramman, 
161;  in  Ass.  pantheon,  189;  head 
of  Ass.  pantheon.  191,  200;  his 
unique  position,  191-2,  215;  local 
deity,  193;  symbol,  194,  632;  in- 
terpretation of  symbol,  195-6, 
6S5;  general  character  of  Ashur, 
195 ;  etymology  of  name,  196; 
Anshar  another  form  of  A.,  197, 
414;  god  of  battle,  195,  199,  201; 
chief  of  pantheon  and  epithets, 
200-2;  king  of  the  Igigi,  200; 
associated  with  Ninib,  214;  his 
temples  few,  215;  associated  with 
Ninib  and  Nergal,  216,  218; 
associated  with  Marduk,  224; 
associated  with  the  great  triad, 
236 ;  name  of  inner  wall  of  Sai- 
gon's II.  palace,  237;  permits  the 
king  to  grow  old  and  protects  the 
troop,  237;  superiority  to  Mar- 
duk, 239;  god  of  oracles,  341; 
Bel  Tarbasi  or  lord  of  the  covirt, 
345;  2d  Adar,  sacred  to  A.,  463; 
Ululu,  sacred  to  A.,  463,  6S5. 

Ashurbanabal, library,  13;  patron  of 
science  and  art,  43,  229;  rule,  44; 
recaptures  N  ana's  statue,  85,  206; 
gives  prominence  to  Nabu  cult, 
129;  celebrates  festival  in  honor 


INDEX. 


743 


of  Gula,  21S,  683;  embellishes 
temple  of  Nergal  at  Tarbisu,  219; 
his  pantheon,  238 ;  sacrifices  in 
Babylonia,  664 ;  restores  temple 
E-kur  at  Nippur,  645 ;  Shamash 
cult  in  Sippar,  646;  Ishtar  cult  in 
Uruk,  648. 

Asliuretililani,  king  of  Assyria,  im- 
proves Nabu's  temple  at  Calah, 229. 

Ashnrnasirbal,  king  of  Assyria,  205; 
gives  prominence  to  Ninib  cult, 
214;  Calah,  his  capital,  215; 
builds  sanctuaries  to  Ishtar,  Sin, 
Gula,  Ea,  Ramman,  215;  as  a 
hunter,  216;  builds  sanctuary  to 
Gula,  218  ;  builds  sanctuary  to  Sin 
at  Calah,  219;  his  pantheon,  237; 
gives  prominence  to  Ishtar  cult, 

-» 1  r 

j-5- 
Ashur-rish-ishi,  king  of  Assyria,  149, 

204,  213. 
Assyria,  military  superiority,  2  ; 
history  by  Herodotus,  3;  art  and 
antiquities,  7  ;  character  of  coun- 
try and  culture,  30-1  ;  character 
of  people,  31;  comparison  with 
Babylonia,  31;  architecture,  42; 
history,  41-4;  conquest  of,  44; 
sun  worship,  78;  Assyrian  Ishtar 
cult  as  distinguished  from  Bab., 
83,  S5  ;  Ass.  Nabu  cult  as  against 
Bab.  Marduk  cult,  128;  religious 
beliefs  more  popular  than  Bab., 
153;  influence  upon  Bab.  culture 
and  religion,  179;  pantheon,  188; 
divisions  of  Ass.  pantheon,  188-9  > 
comparison  of  Ass.  and  Bab. 
pantheons,  189,  201;  attacked  by 
Cassites,  199;  A.  god  of  oracles, 
344 ;  continuity  of  Ass.  and  Bab. 
religion  owing  to  Ass.  worship  of 


Bab.  deities,  642 ;  Airu,  sacred 
month   in    Ass.,   6S4. 

Assyria?is,  see  Assyria. 

Astrology,  lunar  worship  influenced 
by  A.,  219-20;  bar  to  monotheistic 
development,  319;  observation  of 
the  planets,  370;  questions  put 
to  the  astrologer,  369. 

Astronomy,  factor  in  spreading 
lunar  worship,  220,  245;  mixture 
of  astronomy  and  astrology  in  the 
observation  of  eclipses,  357 ;  in 
the  observation  of  the  planets, 
370 ;  forms  part  of  cosmology, 
454;  the  determination  of  the 
laws  under  which  the  stars  stood, 
457 ;  composite  character  of  A. 
science,  460;  divisions  of,  460-1  ; 
moon  and  sun  in,  461. 

Azag-sir,  minor  deity  in  Ass.  pan- 
theon, 234. 

Babbar,  surname  of  Shamash,  72; 

etymology,  72. 
Babylon,  founded,  2;  supremacy,  2; 

capture  of,  4,  45 ;  ancient  center, 

35;  capital  of  Babylonia,  39,  116; 

Marduk,  deity  of,  54,  117-8,531; 

E-sagila,  temple  of  Marduk,  121, 

241,  639;  temple  of  Shamash,  242, 
640;  temple  of  Sin,  242;  temple 
of  Nin-makh,  242,  640;  temple  of 
Nin-khar-sag,  242;  temple  of  Gula, 

242,  63S;  attacked  by  Dibbarra, 
531;  zikkurat  at  Bab.,  619,639; 
temple  to  Nin-lil-anna  (242),  640; 
religious  center  of  the  country, 
649-50. 

Babylonia^  conceptions  of  nether- 
world, 2;  notices  in  rabbinical 
literature,  3;   extent,  26;  charac- 


711 


INDEX. 


ter  of  country,  30;  character  of 
people.  31  ;  character  of  culture, 
34;  Babylonian  states  and  their 
lii>tory,  35  ff.;  dynasties  of,  39- 
41,  44-5,  4S9;  united  under 
Hammurabi,  116;  Bab.  and  Ass. 
Ishtar  cult,  S3,  85;  Bab.  and  Ass. 
Marduk  cult,  128;  Bab.  beliefs 
less  popular  than  Ass.,  153; 
periods  of  Bab.  religion,  102; 
nods  common  to  all  three  periods 
of  Hah.  religion,  163;  Bab.  culture 
and  beliefs  influenced  by  Assyria, 
179;  comparison  of  15ab.  and  Ass. 
pantheons,  1S9,  201;  country  of 
Bel,  222;  under  Ass.  rule,  223; 
source  of  Ass.  culture,  222  ;  inde- 
pendent of  Assyria,  239;  politi- 
cal and  religious  centers,  245;  re- 
places  Nippur,  542;  sanctuary  of 
Nabu,  640  ;  sacrificial  acts  in 
l!ab.  and  their  meaning,  664  ; 
Nisan,  the  sacred  month  in  Bab., 
68  1  ;  continuity  of  liab.  and  Ass. 
belief  owing  to  Ass.  worship  of 
Bab.  gods,  642. 

Babylonians,  see  also  Babylonia  ; 
subjects  of  Bel,  222  ;  humanity  of 
Bel,  222. 

Babylonian-Assyrian  religion,  1 ; 
phases  of,  46-7 ;  age  of  essen- 
tials of  religion,  1  1  1 ;  gods  of  the 
l'>.  A.  pantheon,  1 89 ;  continuity  of 
B.-A.  religion,  6 12;  see  Assyria 
and    Babylonia. 

Bahrein,  exports  wood,  627. 

Ba-kad,  in  the  <  'assite  pantheon,  162, 
172. 

Balasi,  astrologer,  340. 

Balawat,  explorations,  9;  portals  of 
palace  at  B.,  (127. 


/>',/;-,  offspring  of  Ishtar  declines  to 
fight  Zu,  54 r. 

Bashtum,  goddess  in  proper  names 
of  the  2d  Bab.  period,  169. 

Battles  of  Ya/iwe,  recalls  Dibbarra 
epic,  534. 

Bau,  goddess,  51  ;  her  attributes, 
59-60,  90,  67S ;  temple  in  Uru- 
azagga,  59,  103  ;  Zag-muk,  her 
festival,  59,  677;  consort  of  Nin- 
girsu,  59,  677;  identification  with 
Gula,  60;  her  sphere,  60;  daughter 
of  Ami,  59-60;  mother  of  Ea 
and  water-deity,  61  ;  common 
features  with  Ga-sig  (?)  -dug,  61 ; 
Ban  not  Ilebr.  bohu,  60;  her  sons 
(Amiaud),  103;  in  Gudea's  pan- 
theon, 106;  in  incantations,  273; 
Bau's  ship,  655. 

Bd'u-ukin  =  Dungi  (Winckler), 
65. 

Baz,  city  in  Babylonia,  temple  of  Bel- 
sarbi,  242,  639. 

Bel,  see  also  Marduk  and  Bel-Mar- 
duk;  god,  temple  of,  4;  temple 
at  Nippur,  11,  yj,  69,  51,  54,  151, 
642,  644;  position  in  the  Babylo- 
nian theology,  52  ;  oldest  spelling 
and  meaning  of  name,  52;  temple 
in  Lagash,  53 ;  growth  of  his  cult, 
53  ;  blending  with  Marduk,  54, 
145,  146,  148,  222  ;  phases  of  cult, 
55;  associations  and  relations  with 
Ea,  62  ;  associated  with  Allat,  104  ; 
in  Lugalzaggisi's  and  Gudea's 
pantheon,  110;  subordination  to 
Marduk,  1  iS  ;  transfers  his  name 
to  Marduk,  140,  222,  439,  635  ;  god 
of  earth  par  excellence,  140,  147, 
432,  440,  497  ;  creator  of  mankind, 
141,    441  ;    in    the    deluge    story, 


INDEX. 


745 


142,  497,  502,  504  ;  Bel  and  the 
triad,  107,  145-9,  207,  677;  Bel 
in   Hammurabi's  pantheon,    145— 

6,  162;  in  Cassite  period,  146; 
temple  at  Dur-Kurigalzu,  146; 
in  the    Assyrian  pantheon,    146- 

7,  225-6;  in  the  neo-Bab.  pan- 
theon, 147;  epithets,  146,  222,225, 
227,  274  ;  relationship  to  the  other 
members  of  the  triad,  147,  226; 
Bel  (and  Belit)  decree  fates, 
1S°>  J53>  538  5  Dagan  =  Bel,  151, 
154,  209,  225;  relationship  to 
Zakar,  172  ;  lord  of  Annunaki  and 
Igigi,  186 ;  husband  of  Ishtar, 
205;  confused  with  Uagan,  151, 
154,  209;  Ninib,  first-born  of  Bel, 
217;  Sin,  first-born  of  Bel,  219, 
462;  Nusku,  messenger  of,  221; 
temple  at  Ashur,  225;  dwells  in 
E-khar-sag-kurkura,  225;  asso- 
ciated with  Anu  and  Belit,  226- 
8  ;  consort  of  Ishtar,  205  ;  of 
Belit,  226  ;  B.  and  Belit,  names 
of  the  northern  gates  of  Sargon's 
II.  palace,  237;  lays  foundations, 
237  (cf  Ninib);  associated  with 
fire-god,  279,  2S6;  Bel  made  lord 
of  the  earth  by  Marduk,  432;  in  the 
zodiacal  system  in  conjunction 
with  Nibir  and  Ea  marks  the 
three  divisions  of  the  year,  434-5  ; 
identified  with  north  polar-star, 
435,  460  ;  Nisan,  sacred  to  Anu 
and  B.,  462,  677  ;  2d  Elul,  sacred 
to  Anu  and  B.,  463  ;  Bel  in  nth 
tablet  of  Gilgamesh  epic,  496 ; 
rivalry  with  Ea,  497,  507  ff.;  god 
of  Dur-an-ki,  539  ;  on  seal  cylin- 
ders, 540 ;  robbed  of  tablets  of 
fate  by  Zu,  540 ;  temple  E-U-gal, 


640  ;  figurines  of  Bel,  674  ;  Zag- 
muk,  festival  of,  678. 

Bel-epush,  Babylonian  prince,  votive 
object,  671. 

Bel-AIarduk,  see  Bel  and   Marduk. 

Belili,  deity,  417;  in  incantations, 
417  ;  sister  of  Tammuz,  575,  588; 
in  Allatu's  court,  5S8,  593  ;  con- 
sort of  Alallu,  589. 

Belit,  goddess,  51  ;  place  of  cult,  55, 
635  ;  titles  and  their  meanings, 
55-6,  227  ;  sanctuaries,  56  ;  in 
Lugalzaggisi's  pantheon,  1 10;  con- 
sort of  En-lil,  in,  150,  151  ;  con- 
sort of  Ashur,  150,  226,  66S;  uses 
of  "Belit,"  151;  Bel  and  Belit 
decree  the  fate,  150,  153;  relation- 
ship to  Zakar,  172 ;  associated 
with  Anu  and  Bel,  226-8  ; 
confusion  in  Ass.  pantheon, 
226-7;  consort  of  Bel,  226;  con- 
sort of  Ea,  226-7,  23T>  237 ';  = 
Ishtar,  226-7  >  —  Sarpanitum,  wife 
of  Bel-Marduk,  226,  6S4  ;  Emash- 
mash,  her  temple  at  Nineveh, 
227  ;  B.  and  Bel,  names  of  the 
northern  gates  of  Sargon's  II.  pal- 
ace, 237;  brings  fertility,  237; 
temple  at  Babylon  (see  Nin-khar- 
sag),  242  ;  =  Nin-lil,  635  ;  figu- 
rines of,  674. 

Belit  of  Akkad—  Belit,  162,  176. 

Belit-ekalli,  in  the  Cassite  pan- 
theon, 162  ;  consort  of  Ninib, 
iy2;  =Gula,  173,  176;  meaning, 

>73- 
Belit-ildni,  consort  of  Ea,  226,  231, 

237;    B.  and  Ea,  names  of  south- 
ern gates  of  Sargon's  II.  palace, 
237  ;    increases  offspring,  237. 
Belit  matt  =  Belit   of    the   land  = 


746 


INDEX. 


Ishtar,  151,  206,  215;  perhaps  = 
Belit,  227. 

Belit-seri,  scribe  of  Allalu,  587. 

Bel-sarbi,  god,  his  temple  at  Baz, 
242,  639;  perhaps  =  Nergal,  242. 

Bcl-zir,  a  layman,  offers  a  votive 
object,  (17  I. 

Berosus,  source  B.-A.  religion,  1,  4, 
4  [j. 

Birs  Nimrud,  explored,  9. 

Bit-Khabban,  town  in  babylonia; 
its  patron-gods,  176. 

Bit-Khabban,  district  of  Babylonia, 
sacred  to  Sin,  163. 

Bloody  sanctity  of,  661. 

Boaz,  name  of  column  in  Solomon's 
temple,  624. 

Borsippa,  explorations,  9 ;  temple 
of  Nabu,  121,  229,  24r,  639;  its 
situation,  124,  125;  beloved  city 
of  Marduk,  126;  temple  of  Ram- 
man,  242  ;  3  sanctuaries  of  Gula, 
242,  636  (E-ul-la),  641  ;  zikkurat 
ai  1!.,  617,  619,639;  E-makhtila 
shrine  in  E-zida  to  Nabu  at 
Borsippa,  307,  606,  ("136. 

Botta,  P.  E.,  excavations,  6. 

Buddhism,  doctrine  of  annihilation, 

556-7- 

Bulala,  a  foreign  god,  64  \. 

Bunene,in  Nabubaliddin's  pantheon, 
162;  in  proper  names  of  the  2d 
Bab.  period,  169,  176;  asso  iated 
with  Shamash  and  Malik,  170. 

Bunene  and  Malik,  attendants  of 
Shamash,  177  ;  consort  of  Malik, 
177  ;  associated  with  Shamash 
and  Malkatu,  685. 

Burial,  see  Dead. 

Bur-Sin,  repairs  zikkurat  and  builds 
shrine  in  Nippur,  645. 


Calah,  capital  of  Assyria,  42,  193, 
651  ;  temple  of  Nabu,  128,  228; 
temple  of  Belit  mati,  151  ;  temple 
of  Ninib,  214  ;  capital  of  Ashur- 
nasirbal,  215;  sanctuary  of  Sin, 
219;  intellectual  center,  651; 
worship  of  Ninib,  215,  684;  pal- 
ace of  Sargon  II.,  6S7. 

Calendar,  fixed  by  Marduk,  434  ;  im- 
portance of  moon  for  c,  436,  461  ; 
agriculture  and  c,  462 ;  growth 
and  character,  465 ;  adopted  by 
Hebrews,  464,  681. 

Cappadocian  wedge  writings,  20. 

Cassites,  dynasty,  40-1,  480;  cult 
of  Bel  of  Nippur,  146,645;  cult 
of  Shamash,  144,  646;  cult  of 
Ramman,  1 58  ;cult  of  Shukamuna, 
152,  162;  cult  of  Nin-dim-su,  Ba- 
kad,  Fap-u,  Belit-ekalli,  Shuma- 
lia,  162,  172  ;  attack  upon  Assyria, 
199. 

Chaldaean    Wisdom,  362,  384,    403. 

Chaos,  attempts  at  picturing  c,  411, 
419  ;  gods  contemporaneous  with 
the  primeval  c,  413. 

Christianity,  influenced  by  Ass.-Bab. 
religion,  698. 

Claudius  Ptolemaeus'1  astronomy,   5. 

Commercial  literature  in  syllabaries, 

'35- 
Cosmology,  247,  407  ff.  ;  the  Tiamat 
episode,  140;  two  or  more  ver- 
sions of  creation,  141-2,  407-S ; 
literary-religious  character  of,  247  ; 
rise  and  development  of  cosmo- 
logical  speculations,  249;  distinc- 
tion between  popular  and  scholas- 
tic c,  249-50,  442-3  ;  distinction 
as  to  contents  and  form,  250 ; 
historical  kernel,  250  ;    c.  deities 


INDEX. 


747 


antecedent  to  the  known  gods  of 
the  B.-A.  pantheon,  417  ;  not 
creatio  ex  nihilo,  but  evolution  of 
chaos  to  order,  the  keynote  of  c, 
418, 442  ;  similarities  with  Biblical 
account,  409,  433,  435,  451 ;  crea- 
tion of  heaven,  435,  443;  of  sun, 
435;  of  moon,  436;  of  earth,  443; 
of  mankind,  443  ;  second  version, 
its  similarities  with  and  dissimilari- 
ties from  the  first  version,  444  ff.; 
the  gods  of  Nippur,  Erech,  Eridu, 
the  original  creators  of  the  uni- 
verse, Marduk  a  later  introduction, 
449-50 ;  the  mountain  Mashu  and 
the  cosmological  conceptions,  489; 
see  Creation  epic. 

Court  of  the  World,  name  of  temple, 
641. 

Creation  epic,  purpose  of,  409  ;  simi- 
larity with  the  Biblical  account, 
409,  433 ;  literary  form,  409  ff. ; 
a  nature  myth,  432-3  ;  represen- 
tation of  sun,  461  ;  see  Cosmol- 
ogy- 

Ctesias,  source  for  B.-A.  religion,  1, 

4- 

Cult  and  worship,  cf.  Festivals  and 
Rituals;  organization,  115,  133, 
234 ;  gods  in  cult  and  in  invoca- 
tions, 238  ;  revival  of  old  c.  in 
Neo-Bab.  period,  242-3  ;  tree-wor- 
ship, 6S8-9;  compounded  of 
popular  belief  and  theology,  689. 

Cuneiform,  see  Wedge  writing. 

Cuthah,  ancient  center,  35  ;  =  Tell- 
Ibrahim,  65 ;  cult  and  temple 
Nergal  (see  Laz),  65,  164,  21 8, 
563,  583,  648,  667  ;  a  designation 
for  the  nether-world,  563,  570;  syn- 
onymous with  nether-world,  583. 


Cuthaeans,  532. 

Cyrus,    captures     Babylon,    4,    45  ; 

adopts    Babylonian    religion,    45, 

650. 

Dagan,  god,  51  ;  confusion  with  Bel, 
151,  154,  209,  225;  associated  with 
Anu,  154,  209;  chiefly  in  Assyria, 
20S  ;  comparison  with  Dagon, 
208 ;  probably  Aramaic  origin, 
20S  ;  god  of  earth,  209. 

Datnascins  (or  Damascenus),  see 
ATicolas  of  Damascus. 

Damascus,  in  Syria,  cult  of  Ram- 
man,  159. 

Damkina,  consort  of  Ea,  64,  143, 
231;  meaning  of  name,  143; 
relationship  to  Ea  and  Marduk, 
143;  in  magical  texts,  143;  Ea 
and  Damkina  grant  long  life,  1  53  ; 
title  Belit-ilani,  231  ;  occasion- 
ally invoked  in  incantations,  276. 

Damku,  god,  associated  with  Sharru- 
ilu  and  Sha-nit(?)-ka,  232  ;  mean- 
ing of  name,  232 ;  evidently  a 
title,  232;  perhaps  foreign  deity, 
232  ;  worshipped  at  Magganubba, 
232. 

Damn  and  Damu-gal,  epithets  of 
Gula,  166,  175. 

Daniel,  book  of;  bearing  upon  1!.- 
A.  religion,  2,  3;  Daniel  and  Bab. 
religion,  3  {cf  66S) ;  illustrative  of 
Babylonian  dream  lore,  403  ;  au- 
thentic description  of  dedication 
of  statue,  669. 

Dead,  universal,  556  ;  location  and 
names  of  the  gathering  place  of 
the  dead,  557  ff.  (cf.  Nether-world) ; 
All-Souls'  Day,  599,  605,  682; 
under   the   special    protection   of 


748 


tNDEX. 


the  gods,  i S3,  558,  582,  592;  fur- 
nish ora<  les  to  the  living,  559,  560, 
,657  ;  deification  of  dead,  561, 
5S2  ;  condition  of  dead,  563  ff . ; 
purified,  57S,  602;  can  hear  lam- 
entations, 575,  577;  cannot  he 
brought  hack  from  Aralu,  576, 
5S2  ;  suffer  hunger,  598-9;  tombs 
and  burial,  595  ff. 

Death  and  burial,  life  after  death, 
512,  514,  556  ff. ;  cave  burial, 
557;  pyramid  burial,  557. 

Deborah,  song  of,  among  the  "  Bat- 
tles of  Yahwe,"  534. 

Deification  (Parnapishtim  and  Eta- 
na),  470,  527  ;  of  dead,  561,  582  ;  of 
Gudea  and  Dungi,  167,  470,  561  ; 
of  Gimil-Sin,  561  ;  of  Gilgamesh, 
2S2,  284,  470,  561. 

Delila,  parallelism  with  Ishtar,  516. 

Delitzsch,  Friedrich,  Sumerian  cpies- 
tion,  22  ;  see  Preface. 

della  Valle,  Pietro,  traveler,  15. 

Deluge,  in  Gilgamesh  epic  and  O. 
I  .  495  ;  place  of  origin  of  deluge, 
|mN  ;  embodying  two  distinct  tra- 
ditions, 502,  506;  points  of  con- 
tact with  Biblical  narrative,  506 ff.; 
antiquity  of  the  tradition,  50S. 

Demons,  see  also  Animism  and 
Spirits:  chief  demon,  57,  497  ;  in 
in<  antations,  287  ;  how  exorcised, 
330;  when  not  to  be  exorcised, 
37S;  messenger  of  god,  378  ;  Tar 
.  in  the  deluge  story  let  loose 
by  Dibbarra,  500;  the  Qtukku, 
260  (,/'.  511);  the  Ekimmu,  260 
512)  ;  authors  of  evil  and 
disease,  [83,  503,  306,  61 

DeV,  •  enter  of  worship  of  Nina,  88; 
1  it)   oi    \nu.  NX,   155. 


(/<•  Sacy,  Silvestre,  decipherment  of 

wedge  writing,  1  5. 

de  Sar zee,  Ernest,  explorer,  11. 

Dibbarra,  in  Ass.  pantheon,  189; 
plague-god,  232,  505,  52S  ;  a  spirit, 
232  ;  identified  with  Nergal,  232, 
528-9,  594; minor  god,  234 ; in  the 
deluge  story,  500  (cf.  505);  solar 
deity,  528  ;  god  of  war,  "  the  war- 
rior," 528-9;  attendant  of  Ner- 
gal, 529,  58S  ;  attended  by  Ishum, 
529  ;  D.'s  attack  upon  Babylon, 
530-1  ;  D.'s  attack  upon  Uruk, 
531  ;  general  war  among  man- 
kind, 531  ff. ;  Dibbarra  enraged 
and  appeased,  535  ;  identified  with 
Girra,  588. 

Dibbarra  epic,  see  Dibbarra,  232, 
528  ff. ;  recalls  the  "Battles  of 
Yahwe,"  534. 

Dilbat,  city  in  liahylonia  ;  temple  of 
Ninib,  242;  zikkurat  E-gubba-an- 
ki,  639. 

/him  1111,  island,  125. 

Diodorus,  source  for   B.-A.  religion, 

1.  4>  399-  435- 

Dirges,  sung  by  priests  and  priest- 
esses, 604,  658  ;  by  priestesses,  660. 

Divine  names,  variety  of  names  of 
individual  divinities  and  local  uses 
thereof,  73;  transference  of  name 
and  its  meaning,  11S,  140-1  ;  in 
proper  names,  165-6,  169;  obscur- 
ity of,  233. 

Djutndjuma,  10. 

Dogma,  establishment  of,  115,  133, 
247,  690  t'(. 

Dreams,  importance  of,  322-3;  on 
par  with  oracles,  350,  479;  treated 
as  omens,  350,403  ff.  ;  in  the  Gil- 
gamesh epic,  481,  486,  497. 


/.\  DEX. 


749 


Du\u;  Da'ur,  cosmological  deity, 
417. 

Du-azagga,  council  chamber  of  the 
gods,  629;  =  Apsu,  630;  place 
where  the  sun  rises,  630. 

Dumu-zi,  god;  his  double  aspect, 
96-7;  worship  at  Lagash,  635. 

Dumuzi-zit-aba,  god,  51  ;  interpre- 
tation of  name,  96  ;  functions  and 
character,  96  ;  places  of  worship, 
96  ;  in  Gudea's  pantheon,  106. 

Dungi,  of  Ur,  builds  temple  of  Ner- 
gal  at  Cuthah,  65 ;  builds  temple 
of  Nana  in  Uruk,  Si  ;  builds  tem- 
ple to  Nin-Mar,  100  ;  deified,  167, 
470,  561. 

Dun-shagga,  51;  son  of  Nin-girsu, 
91  ;  meaning  of  name,  94  ;  in 
Gudea's  pantheon,  106. 

Dur-an-ki,  name  of  a  temple  tower 
in  Nippur,  539. 

Dur-ilu,  Ass.  city  near  Elamitic 
frontier;  cult  of  Kadi,  232. 

Dur-Kurigalzu,  temple  of  Bel,  146. 

Dur-padda,  a  fort  sacred  to  Ram- 
man,  1 58. 

Dur-zakar,  sanctuary  of  Belit,  56. 

Dit'zu,  see  Tammuz. 

Ea,  god,  51 ;  functions,  62,  78,  230  ; 
epithets,  62,  142,  173,  230  ;  asso- 
ciations and  relations  with  Bel, 
62  ;  king  of  Eridu,  62-3,  275  ; 
sanctuary  in  Girsu,  61  ;  god  of 
the  water,  63,  147,  237,  275,  430, 
699  ;  explanation  of  name,  64  ; 
identification  with  Ninagal  and 
other  deities,  64  ;  member  of  tin- 
great  triad,  107,  148,  207,230,677; 
in  Eugalzaggisi's  and  Gudea's 
pantheon,  in;  survival  of  his  cult, 


123-4,  136;  change  of  position 
since  Hammurabi,  136;  non-men- 
tion in  historical  texts,  136 ; 
prominence  in  religious  texts, 
136;  Ea  and  Marduk  in  incanta- 
tion texts,  139-40  ;  transfers  his 
name  to  Marduk,  118,  141,  439; 
god  of  humanity  par  excellence, 
141  (cf.  264,  275,  297,  437, 
441,  462,  497);  formed  of  clay, 
142;  Ea  in  the  deluge  story,  142, 
497,  504  ;  Ea  and  Damkina  grant 
long  life,  1  53  ;  god  of  fine  arts,  1 77  ; 
fighting  Tiamat,  197,  422  ;  Ninib, 
first-born  of  Ea,  217;  shrine  in 
E-Sagila,  220,  241;  Belit,  consort 
of,  226,  231,  237;  Nabu,  son  of, 
229 ;  in  the  Ass.  pantheon,  230 ; 
sanctuary  at  Ashur,  230 ;  titles 
emphasizing  his  skill,  230  ;  house 
of  wisdom,  522  ;  similarity  and 
difference  between  Ea  and  Nabu, 
230-1  ;  Ea  and  Belitilani,  names 
of  southern  gates  of  Saigon's  pal- 
ace, 237  ;  unlocks  fountains,  237  ; 
shrine  in  E-Zida,  241;  prominent 
in  incantations,  137,  256,  275; 
the  spirits  hostile  to,  264  (cf.  141)  ; 
as  a  healer,  275  ;  overcomes 
eclipse  of  moon,  276  ;  associated 
with  fire-god,  279,  2S6;  in  the 
Shurpu  series,  2SS  ;  conquers  Tia- 
mat, 422;  in  the  zodiac  in  con 
junction  with  Nibir  and  Bel,  434- 
5 ;  identified  with  some  star  in 
southern  heaven,  435,  460  ;  Iv.11, 
his  sacred  month,  462,  677;  Ea 
in  the  nth  tablet  of  the  Gilga- 
mesh  epic,  490;  rivalry  with  Bel, 
497>  5°7  '"'•  !  Persian  Gulf,  sacred 
to  Ea,  498,  545;  father  of  Adapa, 


750 


INDEX. 


54  ^  ;  Ea  in  Ishtar's  descent,  571  ; 
Ea's  sanctuary  K-karzaginna,  636. 

Eabatii,  created  by  Aruru,  448,  474; 
E.  and  Islitar,  484,  4S6  ;  parallel- 
ism betw.  Adam  and  E.,  511; 
E.'s  spirit  conjured  up  by  Nergal, 
511  IT.,  560,  565. 

E-adda,  temple  of  Ann,  53,  640; 
meaning  of  name,  640. 

E-an-dadia,  name  of  zikkurat  at 
Agade,   639  ;    meaning  of  name, 

639- 

E-anna,  temple  of  Ninni  in  Girsu, 
So ;  temple  of  Nana  or  Ishtar  in 
Uruk,  81,  242,  y\,  331,  639,648; 
meaning  of  name,  639. 

E-anna-tuma,  burial  costumes,  597. 

E-babbara,  name  of  the  temples  of 
Shamash  in  Larsa  and  Sippar,  70, 
628,  640  ;  worship  of  Shamash, 
Malik,  Bunene  in  E.  at  Sippar, 
176,  62S;  meaning  of  name,  640; 
history  of  Ebabbara  in  Sippar, 
646  ff . ;  with  shrine  of  Anunit, 
6  |ii;  history  of  Ebabbara  in  Larsa, 
647. 

Ecbatana,  concentric  walls,  61S. 

Ecclesiastes,  unsatisfactory  ending 
like  [2th  tablet  of  Gilgamesh  epic, 

5L3- 

Eclipses,    e.    of    moon    removed  by 

Ea.  276 ;  cause  of   e.,    264,    276, 

280;  calculation  of  time  of  occur- 

''    °f    *'■'    357  !    indication    of 

omens    tin-    ulterior    motive     of 

observations  of,  357,  368  ;    omens 

1    from    observation   of   e. 

in     tin;     "  Illumination     of     Bel  " 

series,     564   ff . ;    eclipses   portend 

public  disaster,  366,  369;   impor- 

tani  e   of    omens    deduced    from 


observations  of  e.,  368  ;  e.  of  sun 
called  the  "  way  of  Aim,"  457. 

Eden,  Garden  of,  legendary,  2  ;  iden- 
tical with  the  confluence  of 
streams,  506. 

Edessa,  gnostic  center,  699. 

E-dim-anna,  chapel  of  Sin  in  E-Zida, 
639  ;  meaning  of  name,  639. 

E-dingiranagin,  see  E-anna-tuma. 

E-ditar-kalama,  sanctuary  of  Sham- 
ash in  Babylon,  242,  640 ;  mean- 
ing of  name,  640. 

E-dnr-an-ki,  zikkurat  at  Larsa,  639  ; 
meaning  of  name,  639. 

E-dur-gi-na,  temple  of  lielsarbi,  242, 
639  ;  meaning  of  name,  639. 

E-edinna,  temple  of  Shamash's  ion- 
sort,  640 ;  meaning  of  name,  640. 

E-es/i-gi,  shrine  of  Nin-girsu  at 
Lagash,  640. 

E-gal-makh,  temple  in  Ur,  639. 

E-gish-skir-gal,  temple  of  Sin  at  Ur, 
76,  241,  295,  640,  647  ;  meaning  of 
name,  640. 

E-gi-umunna,  a  sanctuary,  640; 
meaning  of  name,  640. 

E-gubba-an-ki,  zikkurat  at  Dilbat, 
639;  meaning  of  name,  639. 

E-igi-e-nir-kidur-makh,  temple  to 
Ninni  at  Kish,  639  ;  meaning  of 
name,  639. 

Ekalldte,  name  of  city  in  Assyria, 
cult  of  Ramman  and  Shala,  212. 

E-karzaginna,  sanctuary  of  Ea  in 
E  Sagila,  636. 

E-kharsag,  temple  in  Ur,  638. 

E-kharsag-ella,  temple  of  Gula  in 
Babylon,  meaning  of  name,  638. 

E-kharsag-kalama,  name  of  temple, 
638  ;   E-kur-makh,  638. 

E-kharsag-kurkura,  dwelling  of  Bel, 


/APEX. 


751 


225;  temple  in  Assyria,  615; 
meaning  of  name,  638. 

E-khulkhul,  temple  of  Sin  in  Harran, 
76,  241,  641,  647;  meaning  of 
name,  641. 

E-ki-dur-garza,  temple  to  Nin-lil- 
anna  in  Babylon,  640 ;  meaning 
of  name,  640. 

Ekimmu,  a  class  of  spirits,  260  (cf. 
512,  581,  602). 

E-kua,  papakhu  of  Marduk  in  E-Sag- 
ila,  640  ;  meaning  of  name,  640. 

E-kur,  temple  of  Bel,  11,  37,  51,  54, 
69,  151,  642,  644;  meaning  of 
E-kur,  173,  217,  614,  638;  = 
Eshara,  217  ;  history  of  the  temple, 
644  ff. ;  =  Kharsag(-gal)-kurkura, 
55S;  lofty  dwelling  of  gods,  541; 
designation  for  the  nether-world, 
558;  =  temple,  55S,  614  (cf.  622); 
=  earth,  614;  in  plural  =  divini- 
ties, 615. 

E-kur-makk,  name  of  temple,  63S ; 
=  E-kharsag-kalama,  638. 

Elali,  in  proper  names  of  the  2d 
Bab.  period,  170;  epithet  of  Gibil, 
170. 

Elam,  35;  Elamites  invade  Baby- 
lonia, 38,  480 ;  capture  Nana's 
statue,  85  ;  Elamitic  deities  :  Eria, 
122,  162;   Kadi,  1S8,  232,  234. 

El-Amarna,  tablets  of,  containing 
the  Adapa  legend,  544;  contains 
legend  of  Nergal  conquering  and 
wedding  Allatu,  5S4-5. 

Ehd,  see  Ulidn. 

E-makh,  chapel  to  Nin-kharsag,  639. 

E-makh-tila,  shrine  to  Nabu  at 
Borsippa,  307,  606,  636. 

E-mash-mash,  temple  of  Ishtar,  152; 
of  Belit,  227. 


E-mc-te-ur-sagga ,  temple  of  Zamama- 
Ninib,  640;  meaning  of  name, 
640. 

En-aiuia-titma,  patesi of  Lagash,  con- 
structs storehouse  to  Nin-girsu,  58. 

En-anna-tuma  II.,  2d  dynasty  of  Ur, 
devotee  of  Nin-gal,  98. 

E-nin-tnakh,  chapel  of  Ishtar  in 
Babylon,  242,  640 ;  meaning  of 
name,  640. 

E-ninnu,  temple  of  Nin-girsu,  57, 
87,  635,  640. 

En-ki,  see  Ea. 

En-lil,  see  Bel. 

En-meshara,  attendant  of  Allatu, 
god  of  vegetation,  588 ;  festival 
of  E.  in  the  10th  month,  588. 

Emiaiina  =  Ninni,  51. 

En-ninna,  a  minor  deity  in  the 
Etana  legend,  521. 

En-nugi,  leader  of  the  gods,  4^5. 

En-temena,  patesi  of  Lagash,  56;  con- 
structs storehouse  to  Nin-girsu,  58. 

En-tcna,  see  En-temena  (better 
reading). 

E-nun-makh,  temple  of  Sin  at  Ur, 
295,  640;  meaning  of  name,  640. 

Eiishar,  cosmological  deity,  417. 

En-zu,  see  Sin. 

E-pa,  zikkurat  at  Lagash,  639; 
meaning  of  name,  639. 

E-pad-kalama-suma,  sanctuary  of 
Nabu  in  Babylonia,  640  ;  meaning 
of  name,  640. 

Epics  and  legends,  literary-religious 
character  of,  247  ;  historical  spirit 
of,  250;   nature  myths,  250. 

Erech  =  Warka=  Uruk  ;   see  Uruk. 

Eresh-Kigal  =  Allatu,  584. 

Eria,  Elamitic  goddess,  possibly 
identical  with  Erua,  122,  162. 


752 


INDEX. 


Eridu,  ancient  center,  35,  245,  445  ; 
sanctuary  <>f  Ea,  62,  124,  445;  lost 
political  prestige,  136;  cult  of 
Anunnaki  and  fgigi,  [86;  promi- 
nent in  incantations,  256. 

Erua,  the  "  begetting  "  goddess,  1 23  ; 
amalgamation  with  Sarpanitum, 
122-3,  I3°i  dwelling  in  E-Zida, 
123;  consort  of  Nabu,  123;  pos- 
sibly identical  with  Eria,  122; 
water  deity,  123;  cult  suppressed 
by  Hammurabi,  130;  place  of 
worship,  130. 

E-Sagila,  temple  of  Marduk  in 
Babylon,  121,636;  with  a  shrine  of 
Sarpanitum,  I2t,  241,  636,  641  ; 
with  shrine  of  Nusku,  220,  241  ; 
with  shrine  of  Nabu,  127,  220, 
636;  with  shrine  of  Ea,  220,  241  ; 
with  shrine  of  Tashmitum,  220, 
241  ;  with  shrine  of  Xin-kharsag, 
639  ;  sanctuary  E-karzaginna  of 
Ea,  636 ;  meaning  of  name,  639  ; 
with  papakhu  of  Marduk,  6)40  ; 
takes  the  place  of  E-kur,  645 ; 
history  of  E-Sagila,  64S  ff.;  place 
of  installation  of  rulers,  649. 
influence  of  K-Sagila  and  E-Zida, 
649. 

E-Sagila,  temple  of  Ea,  (46. 

I:  ralgisa,  temple  in  Girsu,  641; 
meaning  of  name,  641. 

Esarhaddon,  king  of  Assyria,  200; 
restores  temple  of  Nana-Ishtar 
al  Erech,  85,  206;  his  pantheon, 
238;  restores  Ekur,  645  ;  Shamash 
1  nit  in  Sippar,  646. 

d   literature,  gods  and 
demons  in  e.,  [83. 

hara,    meaning,    173,    175,    [98; 
offsprings    of,    174;  bride  of    E.,' 


'73>  J75;  built  by  Anshar,  19S; 
built  by  Marduk,  198,  431  ;  = 
Ekur,  217;  placed  by  Marduk 
under  control  of  Bel,  432. 

E-shid-lam,  temple  of  Nergal  and 
Laz  at  Cuthah,  65,  648,  667. 

Etana,  legendary  personage,  46S, 
505,  519  ff.;  dwells  in  the  nether- 
world, 511,  520,  523,  527,  590; 
E.'s  patron,  Shamash,  520;  name 
occurs  in  O.  T.,  519;  traditions 
among  other  nations,  519-21; 
E.  and  Ganymede,  523;  deified, 
527,  590  ;  god  of  vegetation,  590. 

E-temen-an-ki,  zikkurat  to  Marduk 
at  Babylon,  619,  639;  meaning  of 
name,  639. 

Ethics,  B.-A.  religion,  291,  312,  692  ; 
belong  to  advanced  period,  292, 
304-5;  in  prayers,  298-9;  gods 
whose  nature  create  e.  notions, 
306,  692 ;  in  penitential  psalms, 
312  ff.;  private  morality,  694  ff. 

E-tila,  name  of  a  temple,  and  mean- 
ing of  name,  641. 

E-tur-kalama,     temple     of     Ishtar, 

3"- 
E-U-gal,    temple    to     En-lil,     640; 

meaning  of  name,  640. 

E-ulla,  temple  to  Gula  in  Sippar, 
641  ;   meaning  of  name,  641. 

E-ul-mash,  temple  of  Nana  in 
Agade,  82. 

Euphrates,  stream  of  Garden  of 
Eden,  2  (<■/".  506) ;  E.  valley,  cen- 
tral habitation  of  mankind,  2; 
old  settlements  of  Hebrews,  2; 
course  of,  27 ;  comparison  with 
Tigris,  30  ;  one  of  the  four  streams 
fi  'lining  the  confluence  of  streams, 
506  (cf.  2). 


INDEX. 


753 


E-ur-itnin-an-ki,   zikkurat  at    Baby- 
lon, 619. 
Eusebius,  source  for  B.-A.  religion,  1, 

4.  5- 
Eve,  parallelism  with  Ukhat,  511. 

Excavations,  6-15. 

Exorcism,  see  Incantations. 

E-Zida,  temple  of  Nabu  at  Borsippa, 
121,  229,  241,  639;  with  shrine 
of  Erua,  123;  with  shrine  of 
Sarpanitum,  241  ;  with  shrine  of 
Tashmitum,  241  ;  with  shrine  of 
Nusku,  241  ;  with  shrine  of  Ea, 
241;  with  shrine  of  Sin,  639; 
history  of  E-Zida,  648  ff.;  influ- 
ence of  E-Zicla  and  E-Sagila,  649. 

E-Zida,  shrine  of  Nabu  in  E-Sagila, 
127,  220,  229,  636. 

Family,  systematization  of  O.  B. 
pantheon  according  to  Davis,  109. 

Fast  days,  special  occasions,  688. 

Fate  tablets,  tablets  of  fate  in  the 
hands  of  Bel,  53S  (cf  1 50,  1 53) ; 
in  the  Tiamat  story,  420,  428, 
538 ;  robbed  by  Zu,  540 ;  com- 
pared with  the  tablets  of  wisdom, 

585- 
Festivals,    zag-muk,     59,    127,    631, 

677,  678;  significance  of  every 
day,  675  ;  special  significance  of 
special  days,  675,  677,  680-1, 
683-5;  words  for  f.  in  Assyrian, 
676,  6S7  ;  each  month  sacred  to  a 
deity,  462-3,  676,  683-4;  fes- 
tivals and  months  sacred  to 
divinities  not  always  correspond- 
ing, 6S7  ;  special  festivals,  6S7-8; 
the  puru  ceremony,  688  ;  fast  days 
and  rites,  688. 
Fire,  see  Water  (cf.  Gibil-Nusku  in 


incantations,  277) ;  means  of  puri- 
fication, 276,  279  ;  belongs  to  all 
three  divisions  of  the  universe, 
2S6. 

Foreign  gods  in  B.-A.  religion  (see 
also  Cassites),  142,  644  ;  Adad 
=  Ramman,  156  ;  Kadi,  18S,  232, 
234;  Damku,  232;  Eria,  122, 
162    (Elamitic). 

Fresnel,  Fulgence,  expedition,  8. 

Gaga,  Assyrian  pantheon,  18S  ; 
minor  god,  234  ;  Anshar's  mes- 
senger to  Tiamat,  423;  a  foreign 
deity,  238,  644. 

Gal-alim,  51 ;  center  of  worship,  91  ; 
son  of  Nin-girsu,  91  ;  in  Gudea's 
pantheon,  106. 

Gam  la  t,  in  Ass.  pantheon,  iSS. 

Ganymede  and  Etana,  523. 

Ga-sigQ)-dug,  goddess,  51 ;  similar  to 
Bau,  61  ;  worship  at  Lagash,  61, 
635;  in  Gudea's  pantheon, 106,  635. 

Gate  of  Widespread  Splendor,  seat 
of  Sarpanitum  in  E-Sagila,  121, 
241,  636,  641. 

Gegunu,  epithet  of  Aralu,  563. 

Genealogical  systematization  of  Old 
Bab.  pantheon  according  to  Ami- 
aud,  109. 

Genesis,  see  Cosmology. 

Gibil,  fire-god,  E-la-li,  perhaps  an 
epithet,  170;  in  Ass.  pantheon, 
189;  amalgamated  with  Nusku, 
220,  227  ;  in  incantations,  273, 
277;  older  than  Nusku,  277; 
epithets,  277,  280  ;  a  mythological 
conception,  277,  279;  G.-Nusku, 
god  of  civilization,  278;  medium 
betw.  worshipper  and  deity,  279; 
associated  with  Anu,  277  ;  asso- 


754 


INDEX. 


i  iated    with    Bel    and    Ea,    279; 

ociated      with      Nin-gish-zida, 

|i.;  ;  identified  with  Nergal,  594. 

attendant  of  Nergal  and  Allatu, 

588  ;  god  of  foliage,  588. 

Gilgamesh,  hero  of  the  Bab.  epic,  83, 
468  if. ;  in  incantations,  282,  284, 
470;  mythological  explanation  of, 
282,  iS<  >  7  ;  with  omens,  387;  solar 
deity,  470- 1,  515;  king  of  the  earth, 
471  ;  born  in  Marada,  473;  con- 
quers  Uruk,  473,  513;  created  by 
Arnru,  473-4  ;  Shamash  (see  Lu- 
gal- Marada),  his  patron,  471,  479; 
love  affair  with  Islitar,  481  if.; 
Lugal-Marada,  his  patron  (see 
Skamash),  4S6  ;  conquefs  Kluim- 
baba,  480,  514;  G.'s  contest  with 
tlu-  bull,  486,  514,  537;  contest 
with  lion,  488,  514;  Gilgamesh 
half  divine,  half  human,  490,  514  ; 
G.  and  Sabitum,  490-1  ;  G.  and 
Parnapishtim,  492  ff . ;  points  of 
t  nut. ut  with  (  ).  T.,  495,  515-6; 
<  i.  and  Eabani,  510,  565  ;  seeking 
immortality  and  the  secret  of  life 
after  death,  513  ;  parallelism  with 
Samson,  516;  parallelism  with  Her- 
cules, 516;  Gilgamesh  and  Alex- 
. null  1  the  1  in  at,  469,  516 ;  ('..  in 
Yelian,  |i>i,  524;  G.'s  grandfather 
Sokkaros,  524. 

Gimil-Sin,  deified,  561  ;  temple  at 
I  .agash,  561. 

Gim-nun-ta-ud-du-a,  son  of  Bau, 
103;  explanation  of  name,  103; 
pml). dilr  functions,  103. 

Gin-sktil-pa-uddu,  wife  of  Gudea, 
99. 

Girra,  attendant  of  Nergal  and 
Allatu,  588;  identified  with   Dib- 


barra,  588  ;  a  form  of  Nergal  in 
later  texts,  589. 

Ci?  sic,  see  Lagash. 

Gish-galla  (?),  quarter  of  Lagash,  57  ; 
temple  of  Ninni,  80. 

Gish-zida,  identical  with  solar  deity 
Nin-gish-zida,  547;  G.  and  Tam- 
mnz,  doorkeepers  of  heaven,  54G ; 
5th  month  sacred  to  G.,  547 ;  in- 
tercedes for  Adapa  with  Ami, 
548-9. 

Gnosticism,  influenced  by  B.-A. 
religion,  698. 

Great  Place,  name  of  temple,  641. 

Grotcfcnd,  Georg  Friedrick,  decipher- 
ment of  wedge  writing,  16. 

Gudea,  statues,  57,  652  ;  his  pan- 
theon, 106  ff.,  635;  number  of 
deities  indicative  of  the  extent  of 
his  sovereignty,  106  ;  principle  of 
order,  107 ;  gods  common  to 
Gudea's  and  Lugalzaggisi's  pan- 
theon, 1  to  ;  deified,  167,  470,  561  ; 
his  zikkurat,  615,  619;  builder  of 
temples,  642  ;  imports  diorite  from 
Sinai  peninsula,  627,  651  ;  Gudea's 
apsu,  653  ;  Gudea's  ship  for  Nin- 
girsu,  654  ;  G.'s  votive  objects  and 
inscription,  57,  66S-9,  672. 

Gula,  identified  with  Bau,  60  ;  asso- 
ciated with  Ninib,  105  (cf.  576)  ; 
goddess  of  healing,  105,  166,  175, 
2S2  (cf.  576,  6S3)  ;  in  Nebuchad- 
nezzar's I.  pantheon,  162,  175  ;  epi- 
thets, 166,  173,  175,  576;  goddess 
of  nether-world,  174-5  ;  position 
intermediate  betw.  gods  of  the 
living  and  gods  of  the  dead, 
I75('f-  57°);  creator  of  mankind, 
175  ;  her  sanctuary  erected  by 
Ashurnasirbal,   21S;    her  festival 


INDEX. 


755 


celebrated  by  Ashurbanabal,  218, 
683;  =  Nin-Karrak,  242  ;  temple 
at  Babylon  {see Nin-Karrak),  242, 
638  ;  three  sanctuaries  at  Borsip- 
pa,  242,  636  (E-ulla),  641;  in  in- 
cantations, 273,  282  ;  1 2th  clay  of 
Iyar  sacred  to  G.,  683. 

Gungunu,  of  Ur,  erects  two  temples 
to  Shamash  in  Ur,  70. 

Gurmu,  son  of  Bau,  103. 

Gushgin-banda,  171;"  brilliant  chief," 
patron  of  metal-workers,  178. 

Halhy,J.,  Sumerian  question,  22-4. 

Hallabi,  city  near  Sippar,  temple  of 
Ninni,  117,  144. 

Hamath,  city  in  N.  Syria,  578. 

Hammurabi,  king  of  Babylon,  se- 
cures the  hegemony  in  Babylonia, 
116,  532;  Marduk,  the  chief  of 
his  pantheon,  117;  builds  tem- 
ples, 642  ;  builds  temple  to  Ninni 
at  Hallabi,  117;  builds  E-Zida, 
121  ;  ignores  cult  of  Nabu,  128  ; 
suppresses  cult  of  Erua,  130  ;  care 
of  temple  of  Shamash  at  Larsa, 
143-4  ;  Shamash  cult,  117,  I43~4; 
at  Sippar,  117,  143;  at  Larsa, 
143;  Ninni  cult  at  Hallabi,  144- 
5  ;  "proclaimer  of  Anu  and  Bel," 
146-7  ;  beloved  shepherd  of  Belit, 
1 50  ;  list  of  names  of  gods 
in  H.'s  pantheon,  161-2;  "The 
Akkadian,"  532 ;  H.'s  character  as 
a  Messiah,  533  ;  =  Amraphel,  53  |. 

Harran,  city  in  Mesopotamia,  sacred 
to  Sin,  76,  241,  641,  647  ;  its  im- 
portance and  political  decline,  77  ; 
meaning  of  its  name,  78  ;  associa- 
tions with  Ur,  77  ;  enjoys  the 
patronage  of  Sargo'n  II.,  77  ;  tem- 


ple of  Sin,  76,  241,  641  ;  patron- 
ized by  Nabonnedos,  77,  242. 

Haynes,John  II.,  excavations,  ii. 

Heart  of  Shamash,  name  of  a  tem- 
ple, 64  1 . 

Hebrews,  see  Old  Testament. 

Hercules,  parallelism  with  Gilga- 
mesh,  516. 

Herodotus,  source  for  B.-A.  religion, 
1  ;  history  of  Assyria,  3  ;  history 
of  Persia,  4  ;  notices  on  I!. -A.  re- 
ligion, 4  ;  notices  on  Ishtar  cult 
in  Erech,  4S5. 

Hillah,  village,  site  of,  8. 

Historical  texts,  value  as  source  for 
religion,  51,  166,  246,  661  ;  pan- 
theon in  h.  t.  compared  with  that 
in  incantation  texts,  297  ;  source 
for  knowledge  of  sacrifices,  661. 

Hittites,  eagle  standard  among  the 
H.,  527  ;  influence  on  Assyrian 
architecture,  627. 

Hommel,  Fritz,  Sumerian  question, 
21. 

Homoroka  =  Marduk,  5. 

House  Full  of  Joy,  name  of  temple, 
641. 

House  of  Fifty,  see  E-ninnu. 

House  of  Great  Splendor,  name  of 
temple,  641. 

House  of  Hearkening  to  Prayers, 
name  of  temple,  641. 

House  of  Light,  name  of  temple, 
641. 

House  of  the  Brilliant  Free/net, 
name   of   temple,   041. 

House   of  the    Seven    Division 

Heaven  and  Forth,  name  of   /ik- 
kurat  at  Borsippa,  6  \g. 

House  of  the  Seven  Zones,  name  of 
zikkurat  at  Uruk,  639. 


756 


l.\  HEX. 


House  Without  Rival,  name  of  tem- 
ple, 641. 

Hymns  and  prayers,  division  of  re- 
ligious literature,  247,293;  where 
composed,  248;  in  connection 
with  incantations,  293,  301  ;  h.  to 
Shamash,  300  ff. ;  to  Sin,  303-4  ; 
dialogue  style  of  composition 
305;  to  Nebo,  306;  no  difference 
in  thought  betw.  h.  and  incanta- 
tion, 301,  307;  illustrating  rela- 
tionship betw.  man  and  gods,  309; 
deity  as  person  of  dialogue  in, 
310;    see   also    Prayers. 

lamblichus,  source  of  B.-A.  religion, 

19 
Idiklat  =  Tigris,  28. 

Igi-dug-ga,  title  of  Ea,  230. 

Igigi,  explanation  of  name,  185; 
number  of,  and  explanation, 
185;  spirits  of  heaven,  185,  200; 
gods  in  whose  service  the  I.  are, 
[86;  their  character,  [S6;  asso- 
ciated with  Anunnaki,  1S6,  593; 
altar  of  I.  and  Anunnaki,  [86; 
chiefs  of  Eridu,  186;  Ashur, 
king  of,  200;  Aim,  their  chief, 
[86,  207  iated  with  the 

at  triad, 
rat,    minor    god,    in   the    Adapa 
nd,  546. 

Illumination  of  Bel,  name  of  an 
omen  series,   y  1 5. 

Itn  =  Ramman,  1  56. 

Int  merit  =  Ramman,  157. 

Immortality,  id. 

Im-pa-ud-du,  son  of  Han,  103;  ex- 
planation of  name,  103  ;  functii  >n, 
103. 

Incantations,  see  also  Magical  Texts; 


in  therapeutics,  246;  means  and 
methods  of,  270-3;  gods  invoked 
in,  273;  sacred  objects  invoked, 
274;  gods  in  incantations/v; v.t,  ei- 
lence,  275;  the  fire-god  in,  277; 
favorite  time  of,  280-1  ;  i.  services, 
281,  283  ff.;  principle  of  sympa- 
thetic magic,  284;  mixed  with  ethi- 
cal conceptions,  292;  in  connection 
with  prayers,  293,  301;  the  oldest 
fixed  ritual,  294  ;  no  line  of  de- 
marcation betw.  prayers  and  i., 
297,  307;  points  in  common  with 
and  differences  from  penitential 
psalms,  31 2;  the  natural  expression 
of  popular  beliefs,  326;  demons 
exorcised  by  i.,  330;  connecting 
link  betw.  omens  and  i.,  352. 

Inmarmaru,  city  in   Dibbarra  epic, 

53  -> 
jj- 

Invocations,  165;  in  records  of  the 
2d  Bab.  period,  167  ;  combined 
invocations,  235;  where  found, 
235,  245;  motive  and  manner  of, 
236 ff.;  Tiglathpileser  I.,  236;  Ram 
mannirari  I.,  237  ;  Ashurnasirbal, 
237  ;  Shalmaneser  II.,  237  ;  Sar 
gon  IT.,  237;  Sennacherib,  238; 
Esarhaddon,  238;  Ashurbanabal, 
■  ;8  ;  ;.:,<ids  in  invocation  and  in 
actual    worship,    238. 

Irkalla,  a  designation  of  the  nether- 
world, 563,  566;  name  of  the  con- 
sort of  tin-  queen  of  Aralu,  563, 
591  ;  identified  with  Nergal,  592. 

Isaiah,  prophet,  2. 

Ish-gu-tur,  temple  of  Nin-Mar  in 
Mar,  100. 

Ishi-milku,  a  foreign  deity,  644. 

Ishme-Dagan,  king  of  Assyria,  evi- 
dence of  age  of  Dagan  cult,  208. 


INDEX. 


757 


Ishtar,  goddess  Nana,  S2,  85,   202, 
31 1,  643  ;  absorbs  other  deities,  82  ; 
epithets,  83,  1  51-2,  204,  237  ;  func- 
tions in  B.-A.,  83,  459  ;  functions  in 
A.,  83-5;  in  Gilgamesh  epic,  84— 5, 
482,  501,  563-4;  zodiacal  interpr., 
82-4,  310-1  ;  relationship  to  Sin, 
79,84,   163,    565,    571;    relation- 
ship    to     Anu,    84-5,     566 ;    sig- 
nificance   of   these    relationships, 
85;    variants,    82,    85,    202,   242; 
temple  at  Agade,  117,  242  ;  temple 
at    Calah,   151;     temple  E-mash- 
mash,  152,  205,   227;  relationship 
to    Sin    and  Shamash,   163,    571  ; 
goddess  of  war,  83, 1 64, 204 ;  during 
Cassite  and   Nebuchadnezzar's  I. 
reign,    164,  645  ;  variants  of  As- 
syrian  Ishtar,    202  ;    mighty  over 
the  Anunnaki,  204  ;  milder  nature 
in  religious  texts,  205  ;  mother  of 
mankind,  204-5,  v-  237  '>  relation- 
ship to  her  devotees,  205  ;  temple 
Kidmuru,  202  ;  temples  at  Arbela, 
Nineveh,  and  Ashur,  205;    I.  of 
Nineveh  and  I.  of  Arbela  distin- 
guished,    205 ;      Ab    her    sacred 
month,  205,  462,  6S5;  wife  of  Bel, 
205  ;   Belit  of  the  land  (151,  206), 
215,  =  Belit,  226;  temple  in  Uruk, 
81,  242,  311,  531,  639;   worship  in 
Uruk,  103,  242,  472,  475,  531  (see 
Nand);  wife  of  Ashur,  227  ;  asso- 
ciated with  the  great  triad,  236; 
Ishtar  and  Anu,  names  of  west, 
gates  of  Sargon's  II.  palace,  237  ; 
causes  the  inhabitants  to  flourish, 
237   (cf.  204) ;   temple  at  Babylon, 
242  {cf.  Ninmakh),  640;  in  incan- 
tations, 273  ;  in  hymns,  310  ;  tem- 
ple E-tur-kalama,  31 1 ;  in  a  peniten- 


tial  psalm,    31S ;   prominence   of 

cult  of  I.  under  Asliurnasirbal 
and  before,  325,  342;  in  oracles 
and  omens,  343-4 ;  =  Venus  as 
name  of  planet,  370,  458-9,  571  ; 
importance  of  Ishtar-Venus  in 
omen  literature,  371-2 ;  I.  appears 
in  a  dream  to  the  king,  374 ;  person- 
ification of  fertility,  459,  462,  482, 
563,  5S7;  causes  decline,  483,  563; 
10th  month  sacred  to  I.,  Papsukal, 
and  Anu,  463 ;  the  Kizreti,  Ukhati, 
and  Kharimati  of  I.  in  Uruk,  475, 
48 5, 660 ;  relationship  to  Tammuz, 
84,  482,  484,  547.  564,  574 ;  Ish- 
tar's  love  fatal  to  her  lovers,  482, 
516;  I.  and  Eabani,  4S4,  486;  in 
the  deluge,  501,  503-4;  parallel- 
ism with  Delila,  516;  I.  in  the 
lower  world,  564  ;  the  6th  month 
"the  mission  of  Ishtar,"  564, 
6S4 ;  festival  celebrated  in  Ab, 
685;  correlated  to  Allatu,  587;  I. 
cult  under  Ashurbanabal,  85,  206, 
238,  64S;  cult  under  Nebuchad- 
nezzar II.,  648;  figurines  of,  674. 
/shtaritu,    general    designation    of 

Ishtar  priestess,  660. 
Ishum,  god,  51 ;  identity  with  Pa-sag, 
10 1  ;  in  proper  names  of,  2d  Bab. 
period,  169;  messenger  of  Xusku, 
280;  solar  deity,  52S  ;  local  deity, 
528;  attendant  of  Dibbarra,  529, 
594;  describes  Dibbarra's  deeds, 
530  ff.;  his  wars,  533  ff.;  asso- 
ciated with  Sibi,  533  ;  "  the  war- 
rior," 533  ;  associated  with    Xer- 

gal,  594- 
/sin,  ancient   center,  35  ;  kings,  37  ; 
Isin  dynasty  as  "  builders  "  of  tem- 
ple of  Nana  in  L'r,  81. 


75S 


/.\ni:.\. 


nderun,  bay  of,  122. 
fyar,  see  Aim. 
hdubar=  Gilgamesh. 

Jczreel plain,  cult  of  Ramman,  159. 

Job,  book  of,  unsatisfactory  end- 
ing like  ictli  tablet  of  Gilgamesh 
epic,  513. 

Mius,    historical     references    to 
B.-A,  5. 

Judges=  priests,  625,  658. 

Judith,  book  of,  bearing  upon  B.-A. 
religion,  3. 

Jupiter  =  Marduk,  name  of  planet, 
370, 434. 458-9»  676-7;  see  Marduk. 

Kaaba,  at  Mecca,  624. 

Kabru,  epithet  for  Aralu,  563. 

Kadashman-  Turgu,  Cassite  king,  vo- 
tive tablet,  671. 

Kadi,  in  Ass.  pantheon,  iSS;  Ela- 
niitic  god,  232  ;  worshipped  in 
1  )iii  ilu,  232  ;  minor  god,  23  \. 

Kadishtu,  general  designation  of 
[shtar  priestess,  660. 

Kalah-Shergat,  excavations,  10  ;  site 
of  city  of  Ashur,  198. 

Kallat-Eshara,  epithet  of  Gula,  173. 

Kanishtirra,  a  foreign  god,  64  |. 

Kara-indash,  king  of  Babylon,  re- 
stores Shamash  temple  at  Larsa, 
14  p 

Kar-nuna-ta-uddua,  ship  of  Nin- 
1,  654  ;  meaning  of  name, 
654- 

Karun,  one  ol  thi  four  streams  form- 
ing the  confluence  of  streams,  506. 

Katnu,  a  foreign  god,  644. 

Kercha,  one  of  the  four  streams 
ling  the  confluence  of  streams, 
506. 


Khadir=  Parnapishtim,  515. 

Khani,  tribe  hostile  to  Babylon,  152. 

Khani,  god,  in  Ass.  pantheon,  t88  ; 
a  form  of  Nebo,  [88  ;  minor  god, 
234  ;  a  foreign  deity,  644. 

Kharimdti,  sacred  harlots  of  Urnk, 

475>'53r>  66o. 

Kharsag(-gal)-kurkura,  "the  (great) 
mountain  of  the  earth,"  55S  ;  na- 
tive place  of  the  gods,  558,  614  ; 
=  Ekur,  55S. 

Khashur,  mountain  destroyed  by 
Ishum,  533. 

Khasis-Adra,  see  Adra-khasis,  505. 

Kki-gir-nun-na,  son  of  Bau,  103. 

Khi-khi,  mountain  attacked  by 
Ishum,  533. 

Kkiraitum,  a  foreign  deity,  644. 

Khi-shaga,  a  son  of  15au,  103. 

Khorsabad,  unearthed,  6,  8  ;  capital 
of  Assyria,  193  ;  sanctuary  of 
Sin,  219;  palace  of  Saigon,  225; 
names  of  its  gates  and  walls,  237  ; 
sanctuary  of  Nin-Gal,  231  ;  zikku- 
rat  at  K.,  617. 

Khtimbaba  attacks  Uruk,  480;  con- 
quered by  Gilgamesh,  514. 

Khusha,  god  of  the  2d  Bab.  period, 
16S. 

Kidin-Marduk,  father  of  Parnapish- 
tim, 48S,  496. 

Kidmuru,  temple  of  Ishtar  in  Nine- 
veh, 202. 

Kigallu,  a  designation  of  the  nether- 
world, 562. 

Kilili,  a  foreign  deity,  644. 

Kingship,  differentiation  of  kingly 
and  priestly  functions  late,  374  ; 
traces  of  direct  relationship  betw. 
gods  and  king.  374-5. 

Kingu,    consort    of    Tiamat,    420 ; 


INDEX. 


75  'J 


symbol    of  chaos,   538  ;    deprived 

of  the  tablets  of  fate  by  Marduk, 

428. 
Kinunira,  city  on  the  Euphrates  (?), 

sanctuary  of  Dumuzi-zu-aba,  96. 
A'is/i,  city  in  Babylonia,  54;  temple 

of  Zamama,  169;  temple  of  Ninni, 

639- 

Kishar,  god,  K.  and  Anshar  created, 
197,  410  ;  K.  and  Anshar  interme- 
diate betw.  the  monsters  and  the 
gods  in  creation,  414,  416-7  ;  crea- 
tion of  theologians,  416;  Anshar 
and  Kishar  in  the  creation  epic 
and  their  meaning,  418. 

Kishar-gal,  cosmological  deity,  417. 

Kishshat,  a  foreign  god,  644. 

Kislev,  9th  month,  sacred  to  Nergal, 

463- 

A'iareti,  Ukhati,  and  Kharimati,  the 

harlots  of  Uruk,  475,  531,  660. 
Koyunjik,  mound,  unearthed,  7,  9. 
Ku  (?)  -anna,  51;   place  of  worship, 

102;    functions,   102;    consort  of 

Raraman  (?),  102. 
Kudur-mabuk,    2d   dynasty   of    Ur, 

"  builder "    of    temple    of    Sin    in 

Ur,  76,  295  ;   of  temple   of   Nana, 

in  Ur,  81. 
Kumari,  city  in   Babylonia,  temple 

of  Ramman,  242. 
Kurigalzu,  Cassite,  king  of  Babylon, 

cult  of  Bel  of  Nippur,  147,  645. 
Kutu,  see  Cuthak. 

Lagamal,  a  foreign  god,  644. 

Lagash,  governors,  36;  temple  of 
Ami,  53,  640;  temple  of  Belit, 
56;  temple  of  Bau,  635;  quarters 
of,  56-7 ;  temple  of  Ningirsu- 
Ninib,    57,    87,   635,   640;    1  entei 


of  worship  of  Ninni,  So;  ancient 
center,  35,  245;  temple  of  Dumu- 
zi-zu-aba, 96;  Dumuzi,  temple  of 
Ninmar,  635;  temple  of  Nin-gish- 
zida,  99,635;  templeof  Nina,  635; 
temple  of  Ku(?)-an-na,  1 52  ;  temple 
of  Gimil-Sin,  561  ;  shrine  of  Nin- 
girsu,  640;  zikkurat  of  Nin-girsu, 
619,  635,  639;  temple  of  E-salgisa, 
641;  temple  of  Nin-si-a,  635; 
temple  of  Shabra,  635 ;  temple 
of  Nin-sun,  635;  temple  of  Nin- 
tu,  635  ;   votive  objects,  ()j$. 

Lakhamu,  L.  and  Lakhmu  cosmo- 
logical, 197,  410,  417  ;  a  monster, 
414,  418;  in  incantations,  417; 
in  Allatu's  court,  593. 

Larsa,  ancient  center,  35 ;  rulers, 
37-8  ;  dynasty,  39  ;  center  of  wor- 
ship of  Shamash,  69,  [43-4,  241, 
628,  640,  646;  zilvkurats  at  L., 
617,  639. 

Lasimu,  a  foreign  god,  644. 

Lay ard,  Austen  Hairy,  excavations, 

7- 
Laz,   consort   of   Nergal,    219,   243; 
not  mentioned  in  Ass.  texts,  219; 
not  mentioned  in   religious  texts, 

583- 
Lebanon,  cedar  forests,  626. 
Legal  literature,  see  also  Literature ; 

source  for  study  of  religion,  166; 

religious  character  of.  245. 
Li  bat  ions,  664,  666;   in   Old  Testa- 
ment and  in  A.-B.,  665. 
Libit-Ishtar,  2d  dynasty  of  Ur,  builds 

temple  of  Nana  in  Ur,  81. 
Life  of  the  World,  name  of  temple, 

641. 

,>/'  Shamash,  name  of  temple, 

641 


IX  HEX. 


Listi  of  gods,  213,  216;  character  of, 
233 ;  prepared  on  the  basis  of 
religious  texts,  233. 

Literature,  Ashurbanabal's  library, 
132;  syllabaries,  135;  religious  1., 
12,  13,  213,  216,  233,  245,  247, 
690-1  ;  temple  records,  165;  legal 
documents,  165-6;  connection 
betw.  religion  and  literature,  245, 
691  ;  historical  texts,  246  ;  uncer- 
tain demarcation  betw.  religious 
and  secular  1.,  247  ;  epics,  see  67/- 
games/f,  Eabdni,  Adapa ;  com- 
pound of  popular  belief  and  of 
theology,  6S9. 

/  al  cults,  origin  of,  49  ;  confusion 
with  nature  cult,  49-50 ;  growth 
of,  49;  policy  of  preservation  of 
local  cults  by  foreign  conquerors, 
69-70,  106,  in  ;  confusion  of 
(female)  local  cults,  80 ;  promi- 
nence given  to  local  gods  as  com- 
pared  with  others,  1 1 1  ;  local  cult 
features  and  general  cult  features 
compared,  no;  survival  of  local 
cults,  113:  factors  obscuring  local 
cults,  i  13-5;  political  factors,  113; 
populai  factors,  114;  theological 
factors,  114;  absorption,  114,  168, 
171;  number  of,  170,  234,  274; 
in  lists,  2^  ;  of  the  Ass.  pantheon, 
234;    importance  diminishes,  235. 

Loftus,  William    A",  excavations,  9. 

Lofty  and  Brilliant  Wall,  name  of 
temple,  641. 

Ai'/,  bears  more  resemblance  to 
Parnapishtim  than  Noah,  507. 

Lugal-banda,  god,  51;  temple  at 
LJruk,  05;  local  character,  95  ; 
identification  with  Nergal,  95; 
signification  of  name,  95. 


Lugal-edinna,  epithet  of  Nergal, 
172,  280. 

Lugal-erima  (?),  god,  51  ;  his  local 
character,  97 ;  interpretation  of 
name,  97. 

Lugal-gira,  epithet  of  Nergal,  172, 
280. 

Lugal-ki-tnu-na,  in  proper  names  of 
the  2d  Bab.  period,  169. 

Lugal-Marada,  god,  temple  at  Ma- 
rad,  242  ,  a  solar  deity,  473  ;  patron 
of  Gilgamesh,  identical  with  Sha- 
mash,  486. 

Lugal-tnit-tu,  in  Samsuiluna's  pan- 
theon, 162;  wall  of  L.,  172; 
meaning  of  name,  172. 

Ltcgal-zaggisi,  old  Babylonian  king 
of  Uruk,  101  ;  his  pantheon  and 
its  age,  no,  636;  gods  common 
to  Lugal-zaggisi's  and  Gudea's 
pantheon,  no;  priest  of  Anu, 
no. 

Lulubite,  name  of  people,  532. 

Lunar  cycle  and  sun  calendar,  78. 

A 

Ma-an-ish-tu-su,  servitor  of  A,  74. 

Magarida,  a  foreign  god,  644. 

Magganubba,  city  in  n.-e.  Assyria, 
sanctuary  of  Sin,  219;  restored 
by  Sargon  II.,  232  ;  cult  of  Dam- 
ku,  Sharru-ilu,  Sha-nit(?)-ka,  232. 

M.igical  texts,  subdivision  of  reli- 
gious literature,  247  ;  practical 
purposes,  246,  255;  beginning  of 
rituals,  247,  253-4,  269  ;  number 
of,  247  ;  comparative  age  of,  253, 
256;  primitive  popular  thought, 
254,  292  ;  method  of  composition, 
251  ;  titles  of,  254-5  ;  incantation 
rituals  and  their  growth,  255, 
283  ff.;  Ea  and  Eridu  prominent 


INDEX. 


761 


in,  256;  compiled  character, 
256-7  ;  date  of  composition,  257  ; 
bilingual  redaction,  258;  metrical 
traits,  259;  source  of  study  of  pop- 
ular beliefs,  259;  occurrence  of 
Gibil  evidence  of  ancient  age  of, 
277  ;  pantheon  in  m.  t.  compared 
with  that  in  historical  texts, 
297. 
Mahmal,  tabernacle,  compared  with 
the     Bab.    ship    for     the     gods, 

655- 
Makhir,  god  of  dreams,  323,  402. 
Maklu  series,  2S6  ff.,  302. 
Ma-ku-a,    name   of   Marduk's    ship, 

655- 

Malik,  god,  in  Nabubaliddin's  pan- 
theon, 162,  176;  associated  with 
Shamash  and  Bunene,  176;  in 
proper  names  of  the  time  of  Ham- 
murabi, 176;  often  used  as  epi- 
thet of  Shamash,  176;  meaning 
of  name,  176;  Malik  and  Bunene, 
attendants  of  Shamash,  177;  con- 
sort of  Bunene,  177. 

Malkatu  =  A. 

Malku,  name  of  canal,  655;  name 
of  Nam's  ship,  655. 

Ma-ma,  variant  for  Gula,  105. 

Mammitu,  goddess  ;  M.  and  Anun- 
naki    determine    death    and    life, 

493- 
Mamu,   a  form  of  Gula  in  proper 

names    of    the     2d    Bab.    period, 

169. 

Mandaean,  legend  of  Rustem  paral- 
lel to  Etana  legend,  520  ff. 

Mar,  district  in  southern  Habylonia, 
sacred  to  Nin-Mar,  100;  temple 
Ish-gu-tur  of  Nin-Mar,  100. 

Marad,  city  in  Babylonia,  temple  of 


Lugal-Marada,  242  ;  native  place 
of  Gilgamesh,  473. 

Marcheshwan,  see  Arakh-shamnu. 

Marduk,  2d  Bab.  period,  deity  of 
Babylon,  54,  96;  child  par  cxcel- 
lence  of  Ea,  96,  54S  ;  prominence 
of  his  cult  since  Hammurabi,  116, 
134-5,  690-1  ;  his  titles,  11S,  126, 
239,  240,  276,  500,  576,630;  iden- 
tification with  Bel  and  Ea,  118; 
solar  deity,  1 18,  1 19,  528,  576,  690  ; 
his  warlike  traits,  rig;  in  religious 
texts,  120;  temples  in  Babylon 
(E-Sagila)  and  Borsippa,  121,  241, 
636,  639;  his  papakhu,  640;  his 
consort,  12 1-4,  228;  statue  brought 
from  Nineveh  to  E-Sagila,  6S4  ; 
his  statue  recovered  by  Agum, 
122,152,670,687;  lord  of  E-Sag- 
ila and  E-Zida,  126;  New  Year's 
Day  his  festival,  127,  631,  67S, 
6S 1  ;  mediator  betw.  Ea  and  man- 
kind, 139,  276;  Marduk  and  Ea 
in  incantation  texts,  139-40  ; 
conquers  Tiamat,  140,  197,  408, 
422  ;  rivaled  by  Ramman,  15S  ; 
during  the  Cassite  period,  162  ; 
called  Sag-ila,  169;  lord  of  Anun- 
naki  and  Igigi,  186,  239;  absorbs 
the  role  of  other  gods,  iqo,  409; 
builds  Eshara,  19S  ;  blended  witli 
Bel,  54,  t 4 5-6,  148,  222,  542  ; 
Bel's  titles  applied  to,  222,  409, 
542,  635  ;  position  in  the  Assy- 
rian pantheon,  224-5,  239  '<  a'-'M,~ 
ciated  with  Ashur,  224  ;  asso- 
ciated with  Ashur,  Shamash,  and 
Ramman,  224;  second  to  Ashur, 
239;  prominence  of  Ins  cult  in  the 
neo-B.  period,  239-40;  rivaled 
bv  Nairn  in  the  pantheon  of  Nebo- 


762 


/A/)  EX. 


polassar,  240,  679;  also  in  old 
Bab.  period,  648  ;  in  incantations, 
272-3,  276;  in  the  Shurpu  scries, 
2SS  ;  in  hymns,  307  ff.  ;  lord  of 
rest,  309  ;  god  of  orai  les,  esp.  in 
the  south,  342,  315;  zodiacal  in- 
terpretation, 370.  43  |,  458  9,  676 
7;  his  double  aspect  in  the  crea 
tion  epic,  409,  432,  450;  takes  the 
tablets  of  fate  from  Kingu,  428 
((/.  542,681);  creates  the  universe, 
I'Sti.,  117;  establishes  the  dis- 
tricts of  Ami,  Bel,  and  Ea,  432 ; 
arranges  the  stations  of  the  gods 
in  the  zodiacal  system,  434;  cre- 
ates  man,  137  (cf.  I-'.a,  Bel,  4  13, 
I  |S) ;  the  fifty  names  (of  the  Igigi) 
are  bestowed  upon  M.,  438  ;  cre- 
ates the  Ammnaki,  447  ;  =  Nihil', 
/.;-.,  Jupiter,  r\!  m  ises  control  over 
all  the  stars,  434,  458-9;  8th 
month  sacred  to  M.,  463,  678, 
686;  Mardnk-  as  Sharra  in  the 
deluge  story,  500  ;  absent  in  the 
deluge  story,  50S ;  dogs  symbol 
of  tlie  solar  god  Marduk,  528; 
conquers  Zu,  542;  identified  with 
Adapa,  548;  temple  at  Ashur, 
637;  zikkurat  at  Babylon,  639; 
ship  of  Marduk,  655  ;  procession 
on  Nen  :.    179;  spec,  festival 

instituted  by  Agum,  I 

Marduk-baladan,  of  Babylon,  129. 

Marduk-nadin-akhc,  king  of  Baby- 
lon, 1  anied  statues  of  Ramman 
and  Sliala  to  Babylon,  212. 

Mam  rings,  time  of,  59;  to 

Bau,  59. 

Mars  =  Nergal,  name  of  planet,  370, 
1;  the  "sheep"  par  excellence, 


M?r/a  =  Ramman,  166,  212. 

Marwa,  hill  in  Mecca,  6S7. 

Mashu,  mythical  mountain,  4SS-9  ; 
=  Musas  or  Masis,  516. 

Masts,  or  Musas,  =  Mashu,  515. 

Mecca,  623. 

Medes,  44-5. 

Median  wedge  writing,  19. 

Meme,  variant  of  Gula,  175. 

Afrr—  Ramman,   157. 

Mercury  =  Nabu,  planet,  371,459. 

Mesopotamia,  religious  ideas  and 
customs,  i,  3;  seat  of  Terahites, 
2  ;  empire  of  Nimrod,  2  ;  geog- 
raphy, 26,  27  ;  character  of,  2S  ff. 

Messiah,  Hammurabi  and  the  Hebr.- 
Christian  notion  of  Messianic 
time,   533. 

Mili-shikhu,  king  of  Babylon,  his 
cult  of  Shamash,  144;  minor  gods 
worshipped,  172. 

Minor  gods,  2d  Bab.  period,  171- 
2  ;  by  Mili-shikhu,  172  ;  some 
Cassite  deities,  172;  in  Ass. 
texts,  171  ;  in  neo-B.  period,  171, 
242-3  ;  absorbed  by  greater  gods, 
in,  147,  171,  177,  190,  233  ;  pa- 
tron-gods of  arts,  178;  as  per- 
sonifications, 179;  dividing  line 
betw.  spirits  and  m.  g.,  KS3,  233. 

Miskint,  a  foreign  deity,  644. 

Mitanni  wedge  writings,  20. 

Months,  connected  with  gods,  462  ff., 
070;  names  of  the  months,  464 ; 
m.  sacred  to  gods  and  their  festi- 
vals not  always  corresponding, 
687. 

Monumental  finds,  7. 

Moon,  importance  of  m.  as  omen 
giver,  358;  manifold  relations  be 
tween   man   and   m..  35S  ;    impor- 


INDEX. 


763 


tance  of    m.   for    calendar,    436, 

461  ;  moon    and   sun    in    religion 

and  astronomy,  461. 
Moon-god,  see  Sin. 
Moses,  130;  parallelism  with  Saigon 

I.,  562. 
Mosul,  excavations  near,  5. 
Mugkeir,  mound,  excavated,  9  ;  see 

also  Ur. 
Mumtnu,  associated  with  Apsu  and 

Tiamat,  420-1. 
Miinter,  Frederick,  decipherment  of 

wedge  writing,  15. 
Miisas,  or  Masis,  =  Mashu,  516. 
Mythology,  see  also  Nature ;  extent 

and  influence  of  Bab.  m.,  518  ff. 

ATaboniiedos,  of  Babylon,  restores 
temple  of  Shamash  in  Sippar,  70, 
647  ;  last  king  of  Babylonia,  45  ; 
restores  temple  of  Sin  in  Harran, 
77,  646  ;  gives  prominence  to 
Shamash  cult,  240-1. 

Nadu,  god,  2d  B.  period,  1  27  ;  most 
prominent  trait,  124  ;  probable 
aqueous  origin,  124-5,  22°  \  rank 
as  compared  with  that  of  Ea  and 
Marduk,  125,  64S ;  agricultural 
deity,  125  ;  suppression  of  cult  by 
Hammurabi  and  his  successors, 
126  ;  becomes  son  of  Marduk, 
127,  240  (cf.  648-9);  his  shrine 
in  E-Sagila,  127,  220-9,  636; 
prominence  during  the  Assyrian 
period,  12S-9,  228  ;  his  symbol, 
128;  temple  at  Calah,  T2S,  22S- 
9;  prominence  during  the  neo- 
Bab.  period,  129,  240  ;  his  epithets, 
129-31,  229;  meaning  of  name, 
1305  his  functions,  130,  240;  his 
cult    with     other     Semites,    130; 


identified  with  Nusku,  220;  his 
consort  Tashmitmn,  130,  22S 
9;  his  consort  Nana,  224; 
favorite  of  Rammannirari  III., 
128,  22S;  temple  E-Zida  in  Bor- 
sippa,  121,  229,  241,  639,-  648; 
god  of  wisdom,  129,  229;  son  <>f 
Ea,  229 ;  in  the  subscript  to 
Ashurbanabal's  tablets,  229-30; 
similarity  and  difference  betw.  N. 
and  Ea,  230-1  ;  in  hymn,  306 ; 
shrine  E-makh-tila  in  Borsippa, 
307,  636;  god  of  oracles  in  Assyria, 
344,  348  ;  =  Mercury,  name  of 
planet,  371,  459;  in  the  deluge, 
500 ;  sanctuary  E-pad-kalama- 
suma,  640;  Nabu's  ship  and  pro- 
cession, 654,  679. 

Nabti-akhe-irba,  astrologer,  340. 

Nabu-bal-iddiii,  king  of  Babylon, 
162,  685;  restores  cult  of  Sippar, 
176,  628,  645,  670  ;  votive  offer- 
ings, 670. 

Nabupolassar,  see  Ncbopolassar. 

Namar,  district  in  Babylonia,  sacred 
to  Ramman,  Nergai,  and   Nana, 

159,    I(>|. 

Names,  transference  of  name  and 
interpretation  of  this  act,  1  iS, 
1 40-1  ;  composition  of  proper 
names,  165  ;    Bab.  etymologies  of 

names,  173. 

Nanitar,  god  of  pestilence,  569; 
strikes  Ishtar  with  disease  570; 
messenger  of  Allatu,  570,  5S0. 

Nana,  goddess,  51  ;  til  lis,  Si  ;  center 
of  worship,  Si  ;  position  in  the 
pantheon  proper  and  in  the  cos 
mology,8i  ;  her  temples,  E-anna 
in  link.  Si,  242,  31  1,  531,  639; 
E-ul-mash  in  Agade,  82  ;    in   I  r, 


764 


INDEX. 


81-2,85,  202,  311,639,  678;  statue 
captured  by  Elamites  and  recap- 
tured by  Ashurbanabal,  85,  206; 
absorbs  inferior  local  deities,  103  ; 
ited  with  Nergal  and  Ram- 
man,  159,  164;  worshipped  by 
Assyr.  kings,  206;  consort  of  Na- 
irn, 224  ;  Zag-muk  of  Nana,  678. 
Mannar  =  Sin,  etymology  of  N., 
75;  N.  attached  to  Ur,  75;  Sin 
to  Harran,  76;  his  position,  76; 
his  representation,  76  ;  his  func- 
tions, 76,  78;  his  epithets,  76, 
79,   89;    relationship    to    Ningal, 

97- 
Naram-Sin,  founds  temple  of 
Shamash  in  Sippar,  70,  646  ;  his 
exploits  incorporated  in  omen 
text,  562  ;  builder  of  the  temple 
of  En-lil  in  Nippur,  642. 

u,  river  god  in  incantations,  2S2  ; 

ship     of     \7iru,    655;    place     of 

worship,  655. 

.7/v,  worship,  48;  confusion  with 

I   cults,  49-50;   nature  myth, 

432-3.  4S7.  494- 

tVazi-Maruttash,    Cassite   king,    vo- 
tive objects,  671-2. 

Nebo,     mount    in     Moab,    place    of 
death  of  Moses,  130. 

Nebopolassar,  king  of  Babylon,  129; 
makes  Babylon  independent,  239  ; 
makes  cult  of  Marduk  prominent, 
1;  makes  cult  of   Nabu  promi- 
nent, 240;  Shamash  cult  at  Larsa, 
047.  note  3. 
mchadnezzar  I.,  expels  the  Cas- 
.    88,    158  ;  cult    of    Marduk 
and      Ramman,      15S,     162;     his 
pantheon,  162. 

Nebuchadnezzar  II,   religion  of  N. 


and  Daniel,  3;  builder  of  Birs 
Nimrud,  9;  rule,  44;  worships 
Sarpanitum  as  the  begetting  deity, 
1 22  ;  makes  cult  of  Marduk  prom- 
inent, 240,  646;  revives  ancient 
cults,  242-3;  restores  temple  of 
Nin-karrak  at  Sippar,  294 ;  his 
prayers  exemplification  of  ethical 
tendencies,  299 ;  opposed  to  Bel 
cult  in  Nippur,  646 ;  restores 
Shamash  temple  in  Sippar,  646; 
Ishtar  cult  in  Uruk,  648. 
Nergal,  god,  5 1 ;  local  cult  and  temple 
in  Cuthah,  65,  164,  218,  563,  583, 
648 ;  worship  in  Palestine,  65 ;  in 
Uruk,  66;  his  names  and  their 
meanings,  66 ;  functions,  66-7, 
537 ;  development  of  his  attri- 
butes, 67-8,  582,  593 ;  identifica- 
tion with  Lugal-banda,  95 ;  with 
Irkalla,  592  ;  associated  with  Allat, 
104,  183,  565,  580,  593;  associated 
with  Ramman  and  Nana,  159, 
1 64  ;  Nergal  in  Samsuiluna's  pan- 
theon, 162;  in  Nebuchadnezzar's 
I.  pantheon,  162;  epithets,  172; 
chief  of  nether-world  and  subter- 
ranean demons,  183  (cf.  260),  511, 
563,  5S2;  associated  with  Ninib 
as  god  of  the  chase,  216,  21S, 
237;  with  Ninib  and  Ash  ur,  216, 
218;  god  of  war,  21S,  5S2;  Cuthah 
his  sacred  city,  164,  218,  563,  583; 
Kar-Nergal  named  in  his  honor, 
219;  temple  at  Tarbisu,  219  :  Laz 
his  consort,  219,  243,  5S3 ;  iden- 
tified with  Dibbarra,  232,  52S-9, 
504;  perhaps  =  Bel-sarbi,  242 ;  in 
incantations,  273,  2S0;  phases 
of,  280,  459;  =  Mars  as  name  of 
planet,     370,     459;     9th     month 


INDEX. 


765 


sacred  to  N.,  463;  sun  of  midday 
and  summer  solstice,  528,  582 ; 
pictured  as  a  lion,  530 ;  the  lion  a 
symbol  of  Nergal,  537,  5S0,  582  ; 
identified  with  Gibil,  594 ;  associ- 
ated with  Allatu,  104,  1S3,  565, 
5S0,'  5S3,  593  ;  Nergal  conquers 
and  weds  Allatu,  584-5  ;  imitation 
of  Tiamat-Marduk  fight,  585. 

Nether-world,  names  of :  Aralii,  557 ; 
Ekur,  55S;  Shualu,  558;  Kigallu, 
562 ;  Irkalla,  563 ;  Kutu  or  Cuthah, 
563;  epithets  for  n.,  559,  563; 
Nergal,  lord  of  the  n.,  563 ;  the 
older  head  of  the  lower  world  a 
goddess,  Allatu,  not  a  god,  585. 

New  Year's  Festival,  see  Zag-muk. 

Nibir  =  planet  Marduk  or  Jupiter, 
in  the  zodiac  in  conjunction  with 
Bel  and  Ea,  434-5 ;  exercises  con- 
trol over  all  the  stars,  458. 

Nicolas  of  Damascus,  source  B.-A. 
religion,  1,  412. 

Niebuhr,  Carsten,  15. 

ATiffer,  excavations,  1 1 ;  see  Nippur. 

Nika,  mother  of  Esarhaddon,  340. 

Nimrod,  incidental  biblical  reference 
to,  2;  not  =  Gilgamesh,  514. 

Nimrud  (mound),  unearthed,  7 ; 
temple,  9,  627. 

Nina,  quarter  in  Lagash,  57,  86; 
explanation  of  name,  86. 

Nina,  goddess,  51;  explanation  of 
name,  86;  centers  of  worship, 
86-8,  635 ;  associations  with  Nin- 
girsu,  87,  635 ;  relations  to  Ea, 
87-8  ;  fusion  with  Ishtar  of  Nine- 
veh, 88;  interprets  a  dream,  101; 
a  daughter  of  Nin-si-a,  102;  in 
Gudea's  pantheon,  106,  635. 

Nin-a-gal,  god,  51 ;  meaning  of  name, 


64;  function,  64;  identification 
with  Ea,  64. 

Nin-akka-kuddu,  goddess,  51 ;  her  ti- 
tles in  incantation  texts,  103,  2S2 ; 
in  Lugalzaggisi's  pantheon,  no; 
goddess  of  purification,  2S2  ;  mis- 
tress of  Uruk,  103,  282;  water 
deity,  282  ;  lady  of  spells,  2S2. 

Nin-azu,  "  god  of  the  great  city." 
592;  associated  with  Allatu,  586, 
590;  god  of  healing,  590;  identi- 
fied with  Ninib,  591. 

Nin-dara,  see  Nin-si-a. 

Nin-dim-su,  god,  in  the  Cassite  pan- 
theon, 162,  172;    epithet   of    Ea, 

173- 
Nin-din-dug,  name   of   Bau.      (See 

Corrections.) 

Nin-e-gal,  variant  of  Nin-gal,  98. 

Nineveh,  center  of  action  in  book  of 
Judith,  3;  site  of,  6;  capital  of 
Assyria,  46,  193,  651 ;  cult  of  Ish- 
tar, 152,  202-3;  temple  Emash- 
mash  of  Ishtar,  152;  resp.  of 
Belit,  227  ;  Sha-nit(?)-ka,  mistress 
of,  233  ;  worship  of  all  gods  and 
goddesses,  63S ;  intellectual  cen- 
ter, 651. 

Nin-gal,  god,  51;  center  of  worship, 
97;  relationship  to  Nannar,  97; 
sanctuary  at  Khorsabad,  231; 
Nin-gal's  ship,  655. 

Niii-gir-sii,  solar  deity,  51;  subordi- 
nate to  Bel,  53,  57;  identity  with 
Ninib,  57,  217  {cf.  528);  temple 
E-Ninnu  in  Girsu,  57,  87,  634-5, 
640;  votive  offerings,  57;  agri- 
cultural deity =  Shulgur,  58 ;  iden- 
tity with  Tammuz,  58;  relations 
to  Nin-shakh,  93;  in  Gudea's 
pantheon,    106;    in    incantations, 


766 


INDEX. 


273;  zikkurat  in  Lagash  or  Girsu, 
619,635,639;  shrine  in  Lagash, 
640;  his  ship,  654;  consort  of 
Bau,  59,  677. 

Nin-gish-zida,  solar  deity,  51  ;  a  form 
of  Nin-girsu,  92;  meaning  of 
name,  92  ;  identified  with  Ninib, 
Nin-girsu,  Nin-shakh,  99,  217,  528, 
517;  local  character,  99,  52S  ;  tem- 
ple in  Girsu,  99,635;  in  Gudea's 
inscriptions  and  incantation  texts, 
99,  106,  280;  consort  of  Nusku, 
2S0 ;  brings  famine  in  the  land, 
387  ;  5th  month  sacred  to  N.,  462, 
547;  servant  of  Gibil,  463;  4th 
month  sacred  to,  463;  identical 
with  Gish-zida,  547;  associated 
with  Tammuz,  546,  5SS  ;  presides 
over  the  growth  of  trees,  5SS. 

Nin-gul,  51 ;  consort  of  Lugal-banda, 
95 ;  interpretation  of  name,  95 ; 
place  of  worship,  96. 

Nmi/>,  see  Nin-girsu,  solar  deity,  57, 
217,  459,  462,  576,  684;  consort 
of  Gula,  105  (if.  576,  591);  of  Belit- 
ekalli,  173;  in  Hammurabi's  pan- 
theon, 162;  in  Nebuchadnezzar's 
I.  pantheon,  162,  u>\  ;  god  of  war, 
164,21  |,  218;  =  Ud-zal,  166;  asso- 
ciated with  Ashur,  214;  epithets, 
213-4,  217  ;  temple  in  Calah,  214- 
5  (cf  684) ;  favorite  of  Ashurnasir- 
bal  and  Shamshi-Ramman,  214; 
god  of  the  chase  in  association 
with  Nergal,  216,  218,  237  ;  hero  of 
the  heavenly  and  earthly  spirits, 
21  1 ;  in  association  with  Nergal 
and  Ashur,  216;  identical  with 
Nin-girsu,  57,  217;  with  Xin-azu, 
591  ;  absorbs  Nin  gish-zida  and 
Nin-shakh,    217   (cf.    547) ;  repre- 


sents east  sun  and  morning  sun, 
217;  first-born  of  Ka,  217;  off- 
spring of  Ekur,  217  ;  first-born  of 
Bel,  217  ;  god  of  destructive  cloud 
storm,  217,  500;  other  qualities 
in  religious  literature,  21S,  576; 
name  of  outer  wall  of  Sargon's  II. 
palace,  237  ;  lays  the  foundations 
of  cities,  237  ;  three  forms,  238  ; 
temple  in  Dilbat,  242  ;  in  incanta- 
tions, 273,  2S0 ;  =  Saturn,  name  of 
planet,  371,  459;  6th  and  nth 
months  sacred,  215,  6S4;  4th 
month  sacred  to  N.,  462  ;  in  the 
deluge  story,  500  (cf.  217),  504; 
worshipped  at  Nippur,  635  ;  tem- 
ple of  Zamama-Ninib,  640. 

A'in-igi-azag,  title  of  Ea,  230. 

ATin-igi-nangar-bn,  171  ;  presides 
over  metal  workers,  178. 

Nin-Karrak  =  goddess  Gula,  242  ; 
temple  at  Babylon  (see  Gula),  242  ; 
in  incantations,  273;  temple  at 
Sippar,  294  ;  in  a  prayer  of  Nebu- 
chadnezzar, 294. 

Nin-khar-sag  =  goddess  Belit,  164; 
in  Samsuiluna's  pantheon,  162, 
164;  sanctuary  at  Babylon  (see 
Belit),  242,  639. 

Nin-kigal  =  Allatu,  2S2. 

Nin-kurra,  171;  lord  of  mountain, 
patron  of  stone  workers,  178. 

Nin-lil,  see  Belit. 

Nin-lil-anna,  in  Nebuchadnezzar's 
1 1,  pantheon,  242  ;  temple  in  Baby- 
lon, 640. 

Nin-makh  =  Ishtar,  242;  temple  at 
Babylon,  242. 

Nin-mar,  goddess,  51  ;  center  of 
worship,  100;  her  tnnples  in  Mar, 
100;  daughter  of  Nina,  100;  pop- 


INDEX. 


767 


ularity  of  cult,  ioo;  in  Gudea's 
pantheon,  106,  635;  daughter  of 
Marduk,  16S;  temple  at  Lagash, 

635- 
Niii ni,    goddess,  =    Enanna,     51  ; 

titles,  So  ;  center  of  worship,  So  ; 

variant  of  Ishtar,  82  ;  in    Lugal- 

zaggisi's    and    Gudea's    panthea, 

110;  identical  with  Nana  of  Uruk, 

in  ;  temple  at  Hallabi,  117;  her 

cult      by     Hammurabi,      144-5; 

"  Ninni,"     consort    of    Zamama, 

169;  temple  in  Kish,  639. 

Nin-shakh,  god,  51;  his  character 
and  functions,  93  ;  identified  with 
Ninib,  93,  217;  relations  to  Nin- 
girsu  and  Nin-gishzida,  92-3; 
temple  at  Uruk,  93. 

Ninshar,  cosmological  deity,  417. 

Nin-si-a,  god,  51  ;  or  Nin-dar-a,  90; 
center  of  worship,  91,  635;  ab- 
sorbed by  Nin-girsu,  91  ;  in 
Gudea's  pantheon,  106,  635. 

Nin-sun,  god,  temple  of  N.  at  La- 
gash,  635. 

Nin-tu,  god,  temple  of  N.  at  Lagash, 

635- 
Nin-zadim,    god,    171;     patron    of 

sculpture,  178. 
Nippur,  rulers,  37  ;  temple  of  Bel, 
",  37,  69,  51,  54,  151,642,644; 
temple  of  Belit,  55,  635  ;  inscrip- 
tions from  Nippur,  103  ;  promi- 
nence during  Cassite  period,  40, 
146,  4S0  ;  wall  of  Zakar,  172  ;  wall 
of  Lugal-mittu,  172;  ancient  cen- 
ter, 245,  445;  chief  god  Bel,  or 
En-lil,  445,  542  ;  reference  to  N. 
in  Gilgamesh  epic,  486;  rivalry 
betw.  Nippur  and  Eridu,  508  ;  re- 
placed by  Babylon,  542  ;  zikkurat 


at  N.,  617  ;  worship  of  Ninib,  635; 

worship  of    Nusku,   635  ;    votive 

objects,  671-3. 

Nisaba,    goddess,    51;    agricultural 

deity,  101  ;  traits  in  common  with 

Ea,  101;  sister  of  Nina,  101;  centers 

of  cult,  102  ;  in  Gudea's  pantheon, 

in;  probably  local  in  Uruk,  1 1 1 . 

Nisan,  sacred  to  Anu  and  Bel,  462, 

677;    sacred   in    Babylonia,  6S4 ; 

7th  day  sacred  to  Shamash,  Mal- 

katu,  and  Bunene,  685. 

Nisir,    mount    on    which    the    ship 

alights,  503. 
Nisroch,  Assyrian  deity,  2. 
Noah,  resemblance  to  Parnapishtim 
less  than  is  the  case  with  Lot,  507. 
Nu-gim-mud,  title  of  Ea,  230. 
Nun-gal,  god  of  the  2d  Bab.  period, 
168  ;  temple  in  Sippar,  168;  mean- 
ing  of   name,    168  ;    solar    deity, 
168  ;  becomes  a  demon,  16S. 
Nur-Ramman,    of    Ur,    builder    of 
Sin's  temple   in  Ur,  76;   builder 
of  temples  to  Nin-gal  and  Nan- 
nar  at  Ur,  97. 
Nusku,  fire-god,  in  Ass.  pantheon, 
188,    220-1;    in    Bab.    pantheon, 
220 ;     amalgamated    with    Gibil, 
220,  277  ;    identified  with  Nabu, 
220-1  ;     ideographic    writing    of 
name  and   its   explanation,   220; 
solar  deity,  220-1,  279;  shrine  in 
E-Sagila,  220,  241  ;  epithets,  221, 
277,  280;  functions,  221;  shrine 
in    E-Zida,    241;   in   incantations, 
271-3,    277,    286;    younger    than 
Gibil,   277;    a   mythological   con- 
ception, 277,  279;  Gibil-N.,  god 
of  civilization,  278  ;  medium  betw. 
worshipper  and  deity,  279;  asso- 


768 


INDEX. 


ciated  with  Ami,  277,  286  ;  a 
1  iated  with  Bel  and  Ea,  279,  286; 
Ishum,  messenger  of,   280;  wor- 
ship at  Nippur,  635  ;  see  Gibil. 

Okeanos,  see  under  Ea,  63. 

Old  Testament,  source  for  B.-A.  re- 
ligion, 1,669  (?/■  696);  relations 
betw.  the  Hebrews  and  B.-A.,  2, 
611,697  8;  contrast  betw.  Hebr. 
and  B.-A.  religion,  3,668;  O.  T. 
points  of  contact  with  Gilgamesh 
epic,  495 ;  with  deluge  story, 
506  ff.;  parallels  betw.  Adam  and 
Eabani,  Eve  and  Ukhat,  511; 
betw.  Samson  and  Gilgamesh 
stories,  515-6;  3d  chapter  Gene- 
sis compared  with  Adapa  legend, 
551;  Hebr.  Sheol  ||  Bab.  Shualu, 
560;  Hebr.  Sh6el  ||  Bab.  Sha'ilu, 
560  ;  Hebr.-Bab.  custom  of  inquir- 
ing of  the  dead,  560  ;  parallelism 
betw.  Saigon  1.  and  Moses,  562  ; 
conceptions  of  nether-world  in 
( ).  T.  and  in  Bab.,  606;  paral- 
lels betw.  temple  of  Solomon  and 
Bab.  temple,  623,  632,  652-3, 
655;  libation  of  oil  in  0.  T.  and 
in  Ass.-Bab.,  665;  sacrifices' in 
0.  T.  compared  with  Ass.-Bab., 
667-8 ;  teraphim  and  Ass.-Bab. 
amulets,  (>- 1 ;  Hebr.  and  Bab. 
New  Years,  681  ;  Purim  compared 
with  Bab.  15th  Adar  festival,  686 ; 
Ashera  and  tree  worship  in  Baby- 
lonia, 6 

Omens,  division  of  religious  litera- 
ture, 2  (7:  purposes  of,  248,  3  ;i  ; 
comparative  age  of,  2^3-1 ;  an  in- 
direct means  of  forecasting  the 
future,    329;    directions    for    the 


priest  in  recognizing  o.,  330;  re- 
lationship betw.   o.  and  prayers, 

331  ;  part  of  magic  element  in  the 
ritual,  331  ;  occasions  foi  seeking 
an  '>.,  331  ff.;  derived  from  ottered 
animals,  332;  of  a  public  character, 

332  ff.,  362,  364,  374,  401  ;  ques- 
tions of  an  omen  seeker,  2.yj  ff-, 
369  ;  list  of,  337,  362  ;  their  rela- 
tion to  reports,  36S,  372  ;  o.  ritual, 
338;  eonnecting  link  betw.  incan- 
tations and  o.,  352  ;  variety  of  o. 
literature,  355,  362  ;  o.  from  stars, 
356;  the  more  variety,  the  more 
significance  —  a  principle  of  gen- 
eral application  in  interpretation 
of  o.,  358 ;  other  guiding  prin- 
ciples, 358  If.,  388,  401  ;  private  o., 
362,  403,  405;  o.  series  and  mode 
of  their  composition,  3O3  •  omens 
deduced  from  observations  of 
eclipses,  357,  364;  restricted  ap- 
plication of  o.  no  hindrance  to 
theirpractical  use,  366,  372  ;  vague- 
ness of  o.  intentional,  367  ;  inter- 
relation betw.  reports  and  o.,  368, 
372-3;  importance  of  o.  deduced 
from  eclipses  and  more  ordinary 
phenomena,  368-9;  omens  de- 
duced from  observations  of  plan- 
ets, esp.  Ishtar,  and  of  other 
heavenly  bodies,  371-3;  omen 
calendars,  375,382;  omens  from 
terrestrial  phenomena,  383  ff. ; 
logical  principle  controlling  the 
interpretation,  3S4;  offshoot  of 
sympathetic  magic,  384  ;  birth 
omens,  384  ;  partly  public,  partly 
private  character,  386;  the  rarer 
the  phenomena,  the  greater  the 
significance,   385;    ideas  of  sym- 


INDEX. 


769 


pathetic  magic  in  the  interpreta- 
tion of  o.,  388  ;  omens  from  off- 
springs of  animals,  391  ff.;  omens 
from  the  actions  of  animals,  397— 
402  ;  omens  from  dreams,  402-4  ; 
o.  of  a  private  character,  403  ;  pop- 
ular phase  of  augury,  403  ;  omens 
from  individual  experiences,  404; 
dividing  line  betw.  omens  of  indi- 
vidual and  of  public  character, 
^05  ;  the  practical  working  of  the 
omen  belief,  406. 

Ophites,  a  gnostic  sect,  699. 

Opp,  rt,  Jules,  expedition  to  Baby- 
lonia, 8. 

Oracles,  see  also  Omens  and  Witch- 
craft, direct  means  of  forecasting 
the  future,  329 ;  occasions  for 
asking  o,  33S  ff.;  blank  forms 
for  o.,  341  ;  form  of,  341  ff.;  Mar- 
duk,  god  of,  342  ;  asked  of  the 
sun-god,  334  ff.;  of  Ishtar  of 
Arbela,  342  ;  ceremonies  accom- 
panying o.,  345 ;  relationship  to 
penitential  psalms,  347  ;  practical 
purpose  of,  349  ;  by  means  of 
dreams,  349  ff.  ;  generally  vague 
language,  344  ;  occasionally  defi- 
nite language,  360  ;  objects  with 
which  o.  are  concerned,  360  ;  given 
by  priestesses,  485,  or  priests,  329, 
560,  657-8  ;  asked  of  the  dead, 
559-60,  657  ;  asked  on  the  New 
Year's  festival,  62S-9. 

Pantheon,  divisions  and  develop- 
ment, 48-50;  sources,  51  ;  com- 
parison betw.  p.  in  historical  and 
in  incantation  texts,  297  ;  com- 
parison betw.  B.  and  A.  pantheon, 
189,  201. 


Papalhu,  chamber  of  the  god,  627  ; 
cosmological  significance,  629. 

Pap-snkal,  i.e.,  divine  messenger, 
epithet  of  Nin-shakh,  Nebo,  and 
Nusku,  93  (ef.  463,  571);  in  incan- 
tations, 273  ;  10th  month  sacred 
to  Y.,  Ishtar,  and  Anu,  463. 

Pap-u,  god,  in  the  Cassite  pantheon, 
162,  172  ;  offspring  of  E-sharra, 
174 ;  function,  174. 

Paradise,  belief  in,  among  Babylo- 
nians, 578. 

Parakku,  chamber  of  the  god,  627. 

I'arnapish/ii/i,  immortal,  488,  577  ; 
P.  and  Gilgatnesh,  492  ff . ;  son  of 
Kidin-Marduk,  4S8,  496 ;  born  in 
Shurippak,  496  ;  his  epithet  Adra- 
Khasis,  505  ;  bears  more  resem- 
blance to  Lot  than  to  Noah,  507. 

Pa-sag,  god,  51  ;  "the  leader  of  the 
land,"  1 01  ;  identity  with  Ishum, 
1 01  ;  lieutenant  of  Shamash,  107  ; 
in  Gudea's  pantheon,  106. 

Patesi,  198. 

Patron  gods,  of  persons,  216,  235  ; 
Nabu,  patron  of  Ramman-nirari 
III.,  228  ;  of  places,  49,  69-70, 
106,  in. 

Penitential  psalms,  points  in  com- 
mon with  and  differences  from 
incantations,  312  ;  national  origin 
of,  312  ;  marks  relationship  betw. 
god  and  man,  313  ;  purpose  to  ap- 
pease the  anger  of  the  gods,  315, 
6SS  ;  advanced  religious  concep- 
tions, 314-5,  326;  dialogue  form, 
315;  language,  316-7;  age,  yj  ; 
anonymity  of  the  deity  addressed, 
318;  p.  for  specific  purposes,  324, 
688;  relationship   to  oracles,  317. 

Persepolis,  wedge  writings,  16. 


770 


INDEX. 


Persian  Gulf,  sacred  to  Ea,  497  ; 
not  tin'  source  of  the  deluge,  497  ; 
confluence  of  the  streams,  577. 

/Visum  wedge  writing,  19. 

Personifications  of  human  arts,  178. 

Peters,  John  P.,  explorer,  II. 

Pilgrimage,  684. 

Place,  Victor,  excavations,  8. 

Place  of  Fates,  name  of  temple,  641. 

Planets,  observations  of,  370;  iden- 
tifications of  p.  with  deities,  370, 
459  iff-  619)  ;  prominence  of  Ish- 
tar- Venus,  in  astrological  texts, 
371  ;  regarded  as  auguries  for  the 
chiefs  and  the  general  welfare, 
373;  planets  and  zikkurats,  619. 

Politics,  affecting  religion  and  litera- 
ture, 10S,  1 10- 1,  134-5,  201,  239, 
690-1. 

Popular  Belief,  see  Theology  and 
Popular  Belief. 

Prayers,  see  also  Hymns,  occa- 
sions, 663  ;  in  connection  with 
incantations,  293,  299 ;  without 
accompaniment  of  incantations, 
294;  curses  regarded  as  p.,  296; 
no  line  of  demarcation  betw.  in- 
cantations and  p.,  297,  299,  307  ; 
ethics  in,  298  ;  power  of  winds, 
328  ;  no  p.  in  its  highest  form, 
329;  relationship  betw.  prayers 
and  omen,  330;  efficacy  dependent 
on  their  being  uttered  in  the  right 
manner  and  by  the  right  person, 

Priestly  codes,  362. 

Priests  ami  priestesses,  divisions  of, 
269,  241-2,  657-8  ;  p.  as  exorciser 
and  his  function,  271-2,  330,  657- 
8;  mediator  betw.  man  and  god, 
3' 5>  3.3',  353-  374,  56o>  627>  692; 


prognostication  of  future,  329, 
560,  657  ;  importance  of,  353 ; 
"  Priests  of  Ashur,"  association 
of  priestly  functions  with  early 
kingship,  374  ;  priests  and  priest- 
esses in  their  functions,  485, 
655  ff.,  692  ;  priests  purifying  the 
dead,  578,  602  ;  general  name  for 
priest,  657-8,  676;  priestesses 
as  dirge  singers,  604,  65S ;  as 
judges,  625,  658;  intellectual 
leaders,  693  ;  as  sacrificers,  657-8  ; 
eligibility  to  priesthood,  658-9 ; 
women  priests,  485,  659-60. 

Proper  names,  see  also  Names,  com- 
position of,  165;  source  of  study 
of  divinities,  166;  evidence  of  age 
of  cult  of  gods  (Ishme-Dagan), 
20S  ;   Samsi-Ramman,  209. 

Psalms,  see  Penitential  Psalms  ; 
also  Hymns,  Prayers. 

Ptole?ny,  see  Claudius  Ptolemaeus. 

Pudilu,  builds  temple  of  Shamash 
at  Ashur,  209. 

Purat=  Euphrates,  27. 

Purification,  see  Rituals. 

Purim,  compared  with  the  Bab. 
solar  festival,  15th  of  Adar,  686; 
not  to  be  compared  with  Puru, 
688. 

Puru,  a  festival  ceremony,  688. 

Puzur-Shadu-Rabu,  captain  of  the 
ship  of  Parnapishtim,  500. 

A'a,  Egyptian  sun-god,  210. 

Rabbinical  literature,  bearing  upon 
B.-A.  religion,  3,  697. 

Races,  of  Mesopotamia,  24,  33. 

Ramman,  god,  Shala  his  consort, 
102,  161,  212;  associated  with 
Anu,    154,    207,   212;    associated 


INDEX. 


Ill 


with  Shamash,  145,  157-8,  160, 
211;  associated  with  Sin  and 
Shamash,  158,  163;  associated 
with  Nergal  and  Nana,  159,  164; 
rivals  of  Marduk,  1 58  ;  ideographic 
and  other  readings  of  the  name, 
156-7  ;  meaning  of  name,  156-7; 
extent  of  his  cult,  159;  cult 
by  Aramaeans,  159;  indigenous 
to  Assyria,  159;  rival  of  Ashur, 
161  ;  his  two  aspects  as  storm- 
god,  160;  epithets,  156,  158,  160, 
212,  498;  in  Hammurabi's  pan- 
theon, 162;  in  Nebuchadnezzar's 
I.  pantheon,  i62;  =  Martu,  166, 
212;  popular  in  Assyria,  211;  his 
instruments  of  destruction,  212; 
"  the  mightiest  of  the  gods,"  212  ; 
name  of  one  of  the  eastern  gates  of 
Sargon's  II.  palace,  237;  brings 
abundance,  237  ;  temple  at  Bor- 
sippa,  242;  temple  at  Kumari,  242; 
nth  month  sacred  to  R.,  463;  R. 
in  the  deluge,  500  ;  declines  to 
fight  Zu,  54  r. 

Ramman-nirari  I,  king  of  Assyria, 
155;  cult  of  Ramman,  159;  of 
Anunnaki  and  Igigi  as  spirits  of 
earth  and  heaven  resp.,  185  ;  re- 
pels the  Cassites,  199  ;  his  pan- 
theon, 237,  593. 

Ramman-nirari  III.,  king  of  Assyria, 
gives  prominence  to  Nabu  cult  in 
Assyria,  128,  22S ;  erects  temple 
to  Nabu  at  Calah,  22S  ;  Nabu 
his  patron  god,  228. 

Rassam,  Hormuzd  researches,  9. 

Rawlinson,  Henry,  explorations,  9. 

Regnlus,  observations,  372. 

Religion,  unity  of  church  and  state, 
690;  influence  upon  Hebrews,  see 


Old  Testament  ;  upon  Christianity, 
69S ;  upon  Egypt,  Persia,  and' 
Greece,  699-701. 

Religious  texts,  1  2-3,  467  ;  sources 
for  religion,  51,  66 1  ;  in  Bab.  theo- 
logical schools,  134;  reshaping  of 
r.  t.  during  Hammurabi's  time, 
140-2;  divisions,  247-51;  age, 
691  ;  comparison  betw.  Ass.  and 
Bab.  r.  t.,  251-2  ;  their  value  as 
source  for  knowledge  of  sacrifices, 
661 ;  votive  inscriptions  on  statues, 
669;  on  other  objects,  671-2; 
worn  as  amulets,  672;  plague 
tablets,    536,    674. 

Rim-Sin,  of  2d  dynasty  of  Ur, 
"called"  by  Bel  and  Ea,  62;  cult 
of  moon  and  sun-god  in  Ur,  70; 
of  Nana  in  Ur,  81  ;  builds  temple 
of  Nin-shakh  at  Uruk,  93;  his 
wife  builds  temple  to  Nin-gal  at 
Ur,    97. 

Rituals,  establishment  of,  115;  and 
incantations,  247-8,  253-4,  283; 
manner  of  growth,  255;  purifica- 
tion, 2S4,  688;  incantations  the 
oldest  fixed  r.,  294  ;  penitential 
psalms,  312  ff.,  688;  bodily  casti- 
gation,  320,  688;  offerings,  328; 
prayers,  293  ff. ;  never  without 
ulterior  motive,  32S  ;  oracles  and 
omens,  32S  ff. ;  composition  and 
growth,  329-30;  strictness  in  ob- 
servation of,  347. 

Rustem,  son  of  Sal  in  Armen.  and 
Mandaean  legend,  parallel  to 
Etana,  520. 

Saba, district  in  southern  Arabia.  |oi. 

Sal/ turn,  maiden  in  Gilgamesh  epic, 

490-1 ;  the  goddess  of  Siduri,  491. 


772 


INDEX. 


Sacred  objects,  651. 

Sat  red  period,  686. 
red  quarter,  622  ff. 

Sacredness  of  animals,  meaning  of, 
397-S,  662  ;   of  trees,  662-3. 

Sacrifices,  when  not  to  be  offered, 
378;  when  offered,  663,  667-8; 
offered  bypriests,  657-8;  Semitic 
view  of,  660;  comparison  with 
Hebrew,  667-8;  as  determined 
from  religious  and  historical  lit- 
erature, 661  ;  development  of, 
661  ;  two  kinds  of,  661  ;  con- 
nected with  prayers,  663;  use  of 
oil  and  wine,  664,  666  ;  daily,  667  ; 
monthly,  668. 

Sddu,  tin-  hunter  in  the  service  of 
Gilgamesh,  475  ;  associated  with 
Ukhat,  511. 

Safa,  hill  in  Mecca,  6S7. 

Sag-ila  =  Marduk,  in  proper  names 
of  the  2d  Bab.  period,  169. 

Sal,  father  of  Rustem,  520. 

Samsi-Ramman,  king  of  Assyria, 
build,  temple  to  Ramman,  [54, 
159;  builds  temple  to  Ashur  in 
Ashur,  [98;  his  name  as  evidence 
1 'I  age  "t  Shamash  cult,  209. 

Samson,  parallelism  with  (iilga- 
mesh,  51 5  ff. 

Samsuiluna,  king  of  Babylon,  56; 
builds  sanctuary  of  Belit,  56; 
builds  Dur-padda,  sacred  to  Ram- 
man, 158;  his  pantheon.  162; 
builds  wall  of  Zakar  in  Nippur, 
172;  builds  wall  of  Lugal-mittu 
in  Nippur,  172. 

Samuel,  prophet,  his  spirit  called 
up,  559. 

Saracns,  list  king  of  Assyria,  229. 

Sargon  A, "builds"  temple  E-ulmash 


of  Nana  in  Agade,  82;  myth  of 
Saigon  I.  I!  to  an  incident  in  Moses' 
life,  562 ;  his  exploits  incorpo- 
rated in  a  religious  text,  562  ; 
"builder"  of  temple  of  En-li]  in 
Nippur,  642,  645. 

Sargon  If.,  of  Assyria,  restores 
"  laws  and  customs  of  Harran," 
77  ;  builds  sanctuary  to  Shamash, 
211  ;  names  Kar-Nergal  in  honor 
of  Nergal,  219;  builds  sanctuary 
to  Sin  at  Khorsabad  and  Mag- 
ganubba,  219  ;  patron  of  learning, 
229;  prominence  of  Nabu  cult, 
229;  erects  sanctuary  to  Nin-gal 
at  Khorsabad,  231  ;  restores  Mag- 
ganubba,  232  ;  revives  the  triad, 
236  ;  his  pantheon,  237  ;  his  palace 
at  Khorsabad,  225,  237  ;  his  zik- 
kurat  at  Khorsabad,  617  ;  sacri- 
fices in  Babylonia,  664 ;  institutes 
special  festival,  687. 

Sarpanitum,  consort  of  Marduk, 
121,  224,  22S,  636;  interpretation 
of  name,  121,  449;  shrine  in 
E-Sagila,  121,  241,  636,  641  ;  her 
statue  recovered  by  Agum,  122, 
1 52,  670,  6S7  ;  her  subordinate 
position,  1  2  1-2;  goddess  of  mat- 
rimonial fertility,  122,  684;  of 
secret  knowledge,  122;  amalga- 
mation with  Erua,  122;  epithets 
of  Sarpanitum-Krua,  123;  called 
Belit,  224,  684;  shrine  in  E-Zida, 
241  ;  rarely  in  incantations,  27(1  ; 
25th  day  of  Si  wan  her  festival, 
684  ;  festival  instituted  by  Agum, 
687. 

Saturn  =  Ninib,  planet,  371,  459. 

San/,  king  of  Israel,  and  the  witch, 

559- 


INDEX. 


773 


Semites  and  non-Semites  in  Baby- 
lonia, 21-2,  32-4. 

Sendschirli,  excavations  in,  579. 

Senkereh  =  Larsa. 

Sennacherib,  king  of  Assyria,  200; 
takes  statues  of  Ramman  and 
Shala  back  from  Babylon,  212; 
erects  temple  to  Nergal  at  Tar- 
bisu,  219;  his  pantheon,  23S,  644, 
note  2. 

Seven  spirits,  cause  eclipse  of  moon, 
264,  276;  1 2th  month  sacred  to 
them,  463;  Sibi,  collective  per- 
sonification of  the  s.  p.  associated 
in  war  with  Ishum,  533. 

Sex,  inferiority  of  female  to  male  in 
the  B.-A.  pantheon,  75,  79,  104  ; 
confusion  of  female  cults,  80  ;  vari- 
ety of  "ladies"  in  pantheon,  98, 
104;  position  of  female  deities  as 
consorts  of  male  deities,  104,  5S6, 
594  ;  male  deities  becoming  female 
and  consorts  of  male  deities,  177, 
2S0;  association  of  sexes  in  cos- 
mology, 411  ;  association  of  sexes 
in  the  creation  of  the  gods,  413; 
female  deities  and  the  months, 
463;  sex  in  witchcraft,  267,  342, 
660  ;  sex  in  priesthood,  485,  659- 
60;  sex  in  furnishing  oracles,  485, 
660;  sex  among  musicians  and 
dirge  singers,  660  (see  Dirge)  ; 
position  of  woman,  694. 

Shabat,  nth  month,  sacred  to  Ram- 
man, 463  ;  sacred  to  Ninib,  2 1 5, 
684. 

Shabra,  god,  temple  at  Lagash,  635. 

Shailu,  a  designation  for  priest, 
560;   ||  Ilebr.  Shoel,  560. 

Shala,  consort  of  Ramman,  161, 
212;  in  proper  names  of  2d  Bab. 


period,  169;  in  Ass.  pantheon, 
189;  meaning  of  name,  213;  other 
applications  of  the  name,  213; 
epithets,  213. 

Shalman,  god,  in  Ass.  pantheon, 
1 88. 

Shalmaneser  II,  king  of  Assyria, 
gives  prominence  to  Shamash 
cult,    205,    215;     his    pantheon, 

237- 
Shamash,  or  Utu,  51,  277  ;  significa- 
tion of  name,  6S  ;  relations  to  the 
moon-god,  6S-70,  98,  305  ;  centers 
of  worship,  Sippar  and  Larsa, 
69,  117,  143,  176,  241,  62S,  640, 
646 ;  relative  age  of  the  centers, 
70;  temple  Ebabbara,  70,  628, 
640,  645  ;  attributes  and  func- 
tions, 71,  120,  210;  in  incanta- 
tions, 71,  211;  probable  age  of 
these  conceptions,  72  ;  his  other 
names  and  their  meaning,  72-4, 
176  ;  local  uses  thereof,  73;  Mal- 
katu  his  consort,  74-5,  176,  241- 
685  ;  offspring  of  Nin-gal,  9S  ;  in 
Lugalzaggisi's  and  Gudea's  pan- 
theon, no  ;  in  Hammurabi's  pan- 
theon, 162;  warrior  of  heaven  and 
earth,  144,  211;  mighty  hero,  1  52  : 
position  in  Bab.  pantheon  during 
and  after  Hammurabi,  144;  posi- 
tion in  Ass.  pantheon,  144,  209- 
11  ;  associated  with  Ramman,  145, 
157-S,  160,  211;  associated  with 
Sin  and  Ramman,  15S,  163  ;  asso- 
ciated with  Ishtar,  163,  511  ;  asso- 
ciated with  Malik  and  Bunene, 
176;  often  called  Malik,  176; 
symbol  of  Shamash,  176-7;  temple 
at  Ashur,  209  ;  protecting  deity, 
209 ;    ethical    level    in  Ass.    pan- 


774 


INDEX. 


theon,  209-10  ;  judge  of  heaven 
and  earth,  210,  274,  279,  297,  527 
{if.  640)  ;  prominence  of  sun  cult 
during  reign  of  Ashurnasirbal 
and  Shalmaneser  II.,  210,  646; 
under  Esarhaddon,  646;  sanctuary 
bySargon  II.,  211  j  cult  influenced 
by  that  of  Egyptian  Ra,  210  {cf. 
699)  ;  name  of  one  of  the  eastern 
gates  of  Sargon's  II.  palace,  237  ; 
grants  victory,  237 ;  Nebuchad- 
nezzar II.  and  Shamash  cult,  646; 
Nabonnedos  gives  prominence  to 
Sh.  cult,  240-1,  647  ;  temple  in 
Babylon,  242,640;  Sh.  in  incanta- 
tions, 280 ;  in  hymns,  300  ff. ;  in 
omens  and  oracles,  334,  344  ;  Sha- 
mash and  Sin,  305,  647  ;  7th  month 
sacred  to  Sh.,  463,  685;  patron  of 
Gilgamesh,  471,  479;  identical 
with  Lugal-Marada,  486;  patron 
of  Etana,  520  ;  controls  Zu,  53S  ; 
on  seal  cylinders,  540 ;  Si-gar,  a 
festival  of,  6S4;  festival  days,  685. 

Skamski-Ramman,  king  of  Assyria, 
gives  prominence  to  Ninib  cult, 
214. 

Shamuktu,  a  class  of  priestesses  of 
Ishtar,  660. 

Sha-nit(J)-ka,  goddess,  in  Ass.  pan- 
theon, 1S8;  associated  with  Damku 
and  Sharru-ilu,  232  ;  mistress  of 
Nineveh,  233;  =Tshtar,  2^. 

Skarru,  title  of  Marduk,  in  the 
'   lugi     tory,  500. 

Sharru-ilu,    god,     associated     with 

Damku   ami    Sha-nit(?)-ka,    232; 

of  nam      ■  $2  ;  evidently 

a    title,    23?  ;   perhaps   a   foreign 

;   worshipped  at  Magga- 

nubba,  232. 


Shar-sarbi '=  Belsarbi,  242. 
Sherua,  minor  god  in  Ass.  pantheon, 

234  ;  foreign  deity,  644. 
She,'/,    560  ;  O.    T.    conceptions    of 

Sheol  |!  to     Babylonian     concep-. 

tions,   606   ff.;    see    also  Skudlu, 

Dead. 
Shi nar  =  Babylonia,  613. 
Ship,  construction  of,  498-9  ;  Puzur- 

shadu-rabu,  captain  of  ark,   500 ; 

a  sacred  object,  653-4  ;   its  uses 

and  significance,    654  ;  compared 

with    the    Mahmal    and  the   ark, 
_  655. 
"Ship  of  Light,"  name  of  Sin's  ship, 

t    655" 

"  Ship  of  Malku,"  name  of  the  ship 

of  Nam,  655. 
"Ship    of  the  Brilliant  Offspring," 

name  of  Bau's  ship,  655. 
Shir,  god,   in    Nebuchadnezzar's    I. 

pantheon,    162;    local  god,  163; 

patron  of    Bit-Khabban,    176. 
Shirpurla,  see  Lagash. 
Shualu,  designation  of  the    district 

of  the  dead,  560  ff.;  meaning,  559 ; 

I!  to  Hebr.  Sheol,  560. 
Shnbu,     in      Nebuchadnezzar's     I. 

pantheon,    162;    local    character, 

163;  patron  god  of  Bit-Khabban, 

176. 
Shu-bu-la,  god,  in  proper  names  of 

the  2d  Bab.  period,  1 69  ;  patron  of 

Shumdula,  169. 
Shu-gid-la,  see  Shu-bu-la,  169. 
Shukamuna,  Cassite   god,  identical 

with   Nergal,  152,  163,  172;  head 

of   Agum's   pantheon,    152,   172  ; 

consort  of  Shumalia,  173. 
Shul-gur  =  Nin-gir-su,  5 1 . 
Shul-pa-uddu,  god,  51  ;    meaning  of 


INDEX. 


US 


name,  99 ;  age  and  extension  of 
cult,  99  ;  decline  of  cult  in  favor 
of  Shamash  and  Ninib,  100  ;  po- 
sition in  Babylonian  astronomy, 
100  ;  solar  deity,  99,  531. 

Shumalia,  in  the  Cassite  pantheon, 
162-3,  172;  in  Nebuchadnezzar's 
I.  pantheon,  162  ;  consort  of  Shu- 
kamuna,  173;  epithet,  173. 

Shumdula,  city  in  Babylonia,  cult 
of  Shubula,  169. 

Shum-gar,  see  Si-gar. 

Shurippak,  city  on  Eflphrates,  de- 
stroyed by  rainstorm,  495  ;  com- 
parison with  Sodom,  496,  507. 

Shurpu  series,  290. 

Sku-sil-la,  see  Shubula,  169. 

Sibi,  collective  personification  of  the 
seven  evil  spirits  associated  with 
Ishum,  533. 

Sibittum,  minor  deity  in  the  Etana 
legend,  521. 

Siduri,  Sabitum,  the  goddess  of 
Siduri,  491. 

Si-gar,  festival  of  Gula,  6S3  ;  festi- 
val of  Sin,  6S4  ;  festival  of  Sha- 
mash, 684  ;  meaning,  684 ;  date  of 
installation  of  Ashurbanabal,  684. 

Silili,  mother  of  one  of  Ishtar's  as- 
sociates, 482. 

Sin,  god,  see  also  Nannar ;  wor- 
shipped in  Harran,  76,  241,  641, 
647;  temple  at  Ur,  76,  241,  295, 
640,  644,  6S7;  occurrence  of  the 
name  elsewhere,  77;  amalgama- 
tion with  Nannar,  7S  ;  chief  trait, 
78 ;  lunar  cycle  and  sun  calendar, 
78;  epithets  and  functions,  76, 
78-9, 219, 462  ;  gradual  decrease  of 
Sin  cult,  7S-9;  in  Lugalzaggisi's 
and  Gudea's  pantheon,  no;  asso- 


ciated with  Shamash  and  Ram- 
man,  1 58,  163;  in  Hammurabi's 
pantheon,  162;  patron  of  Bit- 
Khabban,  163;  head  of  2d  triad, 
163;  associated  with  Ishtar,  163, 
571;  father  of  Ishtar,  565;  tem- 
ple at  Calah,  219;  sanctuary  at 
Khorsabad,  219;  sanctuary  at 
Magganubba,  219;  god  of  wis- 
dom, 78,  219;  god  of  war  in  Ass. 
pantheon,  219;  first-born  son  of 
Bel,  76,  219  ;  subordinate  position 
in  Ass.  pantheon,  219-20;  Sin 
and  astronomy,  resp.  astrology, 
219-20;  temple  at  Babylon,  242  ; 
in  incantations,  280 ;  in  hymn, 
303-4 ;  Sin  and  Shamash,  305, 
647;  first-born  of  Bel,  219,  462; 
Siwan,  3d  month,  sacred  to  Sin, 
462  ;  chapel  in  E-Zida,  639  ;  Sin 
cult  under  Nabonnedos,  77,  64S  ; 
Sin's  ship,  655  ;  zagmuk  of,  67S  ; 
Si-gar,  festival  of,  6S4. 

Sinai,  a  peninsula  (metals  and 
stone),  627,  652. 

Sin-gamil,  of  Uruk,  builds  sanctu- 
aries to  Nergal  at  Cuthah,  66. 

Siii-gas/iid,  of  Uruk,  servitor  of 
Lugal-banda  and  Nin-gul,  95-6. 

Sin-iddina,  of  Larsa,  builds  sanctuary 
to  Shamash  in  Earsa,  69 ;  builds 
temple  of  Sin  in  Ur,  y6. 

Sippar,  temple  and  archives,  10; 
ancient  center,  35,  245  ;  center  of 
worship  of  Shamash,  69,  117, 
143-4,  241,  62S,  640,  646;  temple 
of  Nun-gal,  168  ;  worship  of  Sha- 
mash, Malik,  and  Bunene,  176; 
temple  of  Nin-karrak,  294;  temple 
of  Malkatu  or  A,  640;  zikkurat, 
"  Threshold  of  Long  Life,"  641. 


776 


/A HEX. 


Sir,  serpent  god,  in  proper  names  of 
the  2d  Bab.  period,  170. 

Sirius,  observations  of,  372. 

Silvan,  3d  month,  sacred  to  Sin, 
462,  6S7;  sacred  to  the  god  of 
brick  structures,  463;  25th  day 
of  Siwan  sacred  to  Belit  of  Baby- 
lon, 684. 

Slaves,  standing  of  slaves  a  measure 
of  social  ethics,  695. 

Smith,  George,  explorations,  9. 

Sodom,  destruction  of,  point  of  con- 
tact with  Gilgamesh  epic,  495-6, 
507. 

Sokkaros,  grandfather  of  Gilgamesh 
(Aelian),  52  |. 

Solomonic  temple  and  the  sacred 
quarter  in  Nippur,  623-4 ;  horns 
of  altar  compared  with  Bab,  cus- 
tom, 652;  "sea"  compared  with 
Apsu,  653 ;  ark  compared  with 
the  Bab.  ship,  655. 

Sorccr,  Sorceress,  see  also  Witch- 
craft ;  relationship  betw.  s.  and 
oracle-giver,  342. 

Spirits,  in  proper  names,  166,  180; 
Xun-gal-e-ne,  a  class  of,  168  (cf. 
184);  their  symbols,  174,  1S2  ; 
functions,  174;  lists  of,  180;  clas- 
sification of,  1S1  ff.;  of  disease, 
1X1,1 86,  246  ;  of  the  field,  182  ;  of 
the  nether-world,  183;  dividing 
line  betw.  gods  and  spirits,  1S1, 
1S3,  231,  266,  274;  of  evil,  260, 
264 ;  activity  of,  260-1  ;  repre- 
1. it  inns  of,  263;  habitations 
of,  260,  263;  the  seven  spirits, 
264;  strength  attribute  of,  266; 
itionship  betw.  demons  and 
witchcraft,  267;  differentiation  of 
demons,  .:<>2. 


Spi>  ititalization  of  mythology,  304, 
306  ;  characteristic  of  later  times, 
297;   in  penitential   psalms,  313, 

3r9- 

Splendor  of  Heaven  and  Earth, 
name  of  temple,  641. 

Stars,  writing  of  heaven,  454 ;  divi- 
sion of,  455. 

Storm,  symbols  of  storm  (birds  and 
bulls),  537  ff. 

Subartu,  name  of  country,  532. 

Sugi,  name  of  country,  675. 

Sukhal-ziku,  name  of  mythical  foun- 
tain, 572. 

Snmer  and  Akkad,  ethnological- 
geographical,  32-3 ;  S.-A.  lan- 
guage in  incantations,  259. 

Sttmerian  question,  21—4,  32-4. 

Sun,  see  Shamash  ;  gates  of  s.,  435, 
443 ;  representation  of  sun  in 
creation  story,  461 ;  sun  and  moon 
in  astronomy  and  religion,  461. 

Stesian  wedge  writing,  19. 

Syllabaries,  135. 

Syncellns,  source  for  B.-A.  religion, 

h  5- 

Systematized  religion,  see  Theology. 

Taboo,  meaning  of,  397. 

Talisman,  see  Amulet,  Teraphim. 

Tammuz,  agricultural  deity,  58,  588  ; 
relations  to  Ishtar,  84,  482,  484, 
547,  564,  574 ;  T.  and  Gish-zida 
doorkeepers  of  heaven,  546 ;  solar 
deity,  547;  4th  month  named 
for  T.,  547,  682  ;  intercedes  for 
Adapa  with  Anu,  548-9;  brother 
of  Belili,  575;  T.'s  day=  All- 
Souls'  Day,  599,  605,  682 ;  iden- 
tified with  Nin-girsu,  58 ;  associ- 
ated with  Nin-gish-zida,  546,  588. 


INDEX. 


in 


Tammuz,  4th  month,  sacred  to 
Ninib,  462  ;  named  for  god  Tam- 
muz, 547,  682  ;  sacred  to  the  ser- 
vant of  Gibil,  463. 

Tarbisu,  city  north  of  Nineveh  ; 
temple  of  Nergal,  219. 

Tar-gul-le,  names  of  some  demons 
let  loose  by  Dibbarra  in  the  deluge 
story,  500. 

Tashmitum,  goddess  in  pantheon 
of  Hammurabi,  130;  a  new  crea- 
tion, 131-2;  consort  of  Nabu, 
130-1,  22S-9  ;  meaning  of  name, 
131  ;  her  quasi-artificial  character, 
1 31-2  ;  called  Nana,  132;  shrine 
in  E-Sagila,  220,  241  ;  in  the  sub- 
script to  Ashurbanabal's  tablets, 
229-30  ;  shrine  in  E-Zida,  241. 

Tashritu,  see  Tishri. 

Taylor,  J.  E.,  excavations,  8. 

Tebet,  10th  month,  sacred  to  Papsu- 
kal,  Ishtar,  and  Anu,  463 ;  festival 
of  En-meshara,  588. 

Tel-Id,  mound  near  Warka,  site  of 
ancient  capital  of  Mar,  100. 

Tell-el-amarna,  see  El-amarna. 

Tell-Ibrahim  =  Cuthah. 

Telloh,  excavations,  1 1  ;  temple 
records  and  legal  documents,  165. 

Tcll-Sifr,  temple  records  and  legal 
documents,  165. 

Temple  records,  see  also  Literature  ; 
source  of  study  of  the  deities,  167. 

Temples,  612  ff. ;  names  of  t.,  638  ff.; 
history  of  t,  642  ff . ;  as  financial 
establishments,  650 ;  minor  part 
played  by  the  temples  in  Assyria, 
659. 

Terah,  Terahites,  appearance  in 
Palestine,  2  ;  migrations,  2  ;  home 
of,  9. 


Teraphim,  talismans  parallel  to 
Ass. -Bab.  statuettes  of  gods,  674. 

Tciimman,  king  of  Elam,  296. 

Thamud,  Arabic  tribe  destroyed, 
496. 

The  Brilliant  House,  name  of  temple, 
641. 

"  The  Lesser  Light,"  name  of  Nin- 
gal's  ship,  655. 

Theology  and  popular  belief,  S9,  114, 
131,  1S0,  .235,  249,  411,  414,  416, 
45S,  494,  527,  5S4,  614,  619,  629- 
30,  689;  Gudea's  system,  10S  ; 
interaction  betw.  political  fortunes 
and  positions  of  divinities,  108, 
no-ii,  134-5,  201,  234,  235; 
genealogical  arrangement  accord- 
ing to  Amiaud,  108  ;  family  theory 
according  to  Davis,  109;  its  value, 
109;  tendency  towards  recogni- 
tion of  certain  great  gods,  hi, 
147,  171,  190,  234-5,  696;  or- 
ganization of  cult  and  ritual, 
establishment  of  dogmas,  1 1 5, 
133,  247,690;  pedagogical  activ- 
ity, 135;  formation  of  the  great 
triad,  147  ;  re-systematization  of 
gods  by  Hammurabi,  171,  276; 
systematization  of  spirits,  184 ; 
attempts  to  systematize  series  of 
gods,  213,  216,  233;  theology  in 
cosmology,  412  ff.,  418,443;  in 
the  12th  tablet  of  the  Gilgamesh 
epic,  512-3;  in  the  Etana  legend, 
527  ;  theology  in  the  Zu  epic,  542. 

Thomas,  Felix,  excavations,  S. 

Thousand  and  One  Nights,  494. 

Threshold  of  Long  Life,  name  of 
zikkurat  in  Sippar,  64  1 . 

Ti&mat,  mythical  monster,  con- 
quered by  Marduk,  140,  197,408; 


778 


I.XHEX. 


foils;])!  by  Ann,  Ea,  197;  synony- 
mous  with  Apsu,  411  ;  female 
prim  iple,  411;  personified  chaos, 
1 1  1,  414 ;  dominion  of  T.  and 
\psu  pre<  edes  that  "I  the  .nods, 
4 1 2  ;  gods  product  of  the  union 
of  T.  and  Apsu,  413;  mythical 
monsters  product  of  the  union 
of  T.  and  Apsu,  414;  associates 
of  T.,  419;  Ummu-Khubur,  epi- 
thet of  'I'.,  4 1  () ;  Kingu  her  con- 
sort, 4 jo;  Tiamat  epic  compared 
with  Zu  myth,  543  ;  comparison 
with  Nergal-Allat  fight,  ss5- 

Tiglathpileser  /.,  king  of  .Assyria, 
nomenclature  of  Bel,  146;  dedi- 
<  ates  temple  to  Ann  and  Ram- 
man,  151,  1  59  ;  as  a  hunter,  216  ; 
rebuilds  temple  of  Bel  at  Ashur, 
225;  pantheon,  236;  dedicates 
captured  gods,  675. 

Tiglathpileser  //.,  sacrifices  in  Baby- 
lonia, 664. 

Tigris, course  of,  28-9;  comparison 
with  Euphrates,  30  ;  in  garden 
of  Eden,  2  (cf.  506)  ;  one  of  the 
four  streams  forming  the  conflu- 
ence of  streams,  506  (cf.  2). 

TisAri,  7th  month,  sacred  to  Sha- 
mash,  402  (cf.  681,  6X5) ;  7th  clay 
sacred  to  Shamash,  Malkatu,  and 
Bunene,  685. 

Tombs,  see  Dead. 

Triad,  the  great,  Ann,  Bel,  Ea,  107; 
relationship  of  the  members,  147; 
lui  t  <>t  thei  ilogy,  147,  149  ;  de- 
pment  of,  14S;  extraneous 
position,  1  19;  representative  of 
the  three  kingdoms,  155;  pun- 
ish the  violator  of  monuments, 
207  ;    h\  the  name  of   the  months, 


20S,  236;  general  position  in 
\>s  pantheon,  236;  give  victory, 
236;  grant  rule,  236;  associated 
with  Ashur,  Islitar,  and  Igigi,  and 
Anunnaki,  236;  in  incantations, 
273  ;  associated  with  fire-god,  279; 
in  Gudea,  418;  in  the  cosmology, 
41S;  ancestors  of  the  triad,  418; 
symbolizes  the  eternal  laws  of  the 
universe,  432. 

Triad,  second,  Sin,  Shamash,  Ram- 
man,  163  ;   in  incantations,  273. 

Tubal-cain,  biblical  father  of  metal 
workers,  178. 

Tur-lil-en,  in  Nebuchadnezzar's  [I. 
pantheon,  242. 

Tychsen,  Gerhard,  decipherment  of 
wedge  writing,  1  5. 

Ubshu-kcnua,    council    chamber    of 

the  gods,  423,  629,  687. 
Uddushii-Namir,   a  divine   servant, 

created  by  Ea,  57 1 . 
Ud-zal  =  Ninib,  166. 
Ukliat,  in  the  Gilgamesh  epic,  475, 

476 ff. ;  parallelism  betw.  U.  and 

Eve,  511. 
Ukhdti,  sacred  harlots  of  Uruk,  475. 

531,  660. 
Ul-mash-shi-tum,  in  proper  names  of 

the  2d  Bab.  period,  170. 
llnl  11,  6th  month,  sacred  to  Ishtar, 

462,  6S4  ;    sacred  to   Ashur,  463, 

685;    sacred   to   Ninib,   215,  684; 

y\  day  of  U.  sacred   to  Shamash, 

Malkatu,  and  Bunene,  685. 
Ululu  2d   (intercalated),   sacred    to 

Ann  and  Bel,  463. 
Umii,  goddess,  51  ;  priestess  of  Uruk, 

102  ;  in    Lugalzaggisi's  pantheon, 

1 10. 


INDEX. 


779 


Umunpa-uddu  =  Shul-pa-uddu,  99. 

Ur,  city,  home  of  Terahites,  9 ; 
dynasties,  36-7;  sacred  to  Sin  or 
Nannar,  69-70,  75,  242,  640,  647; 
sanctuary  of  Shamash,  70 ;  start- 
ing point  of  Hebrew  migrations, 
77;  association  with  Harran,  77; 
temple  of  Nana,  Si  ;  temple  of 
Nin-gal,  97 ;  temple  of  Sin,  70, 
242,  295,  640;  literary  center, 
245;  zikkurat  at  Ur,  617  ;  temple 
E-kharsag,  63S ;  temple  E-gal- 
makh,  639. 

Ur-Ban,  patesi  of  Lagash,  builds 
sanctuary  of  Belit,  56;  builds 
sanctuary  to  Ea  in  Girsu,  61-3 ; 
builds  sanctuary  to  Shamash  in 
Larsa,  69  ;  preserves  local  cults 
in  Larsa,  Nippur,  Uruk,  69; 
builder  of  temple  of  Sin  in  Ur, 
76;  builds  temple  of  Ninni  in 
Gishgalla,  80  ;  builds  temple  to 
Nin-Mar  in  Mar,  100;  builds  tem- 
ple of  Ku(?)-anna  in  Girsu,  102; 
erects  a  zikkurat  in  Nippur,  645. 

Ur-Gur  II.,  1st  dynasty  of  Ur,  builds 
temple  of  Nana  in  Uruk,  81. 

Ur-Kasdim  =  Ur. 

Ur-Nin-Girsu,  of  Lagash,  priest  of 
Ann,  90. 

Ur-Shul  pa-uddu,  ruler  of  Kish,  99. 

Uru-azagga,  quarter  of  Lagash,  57  ; 
temple  of  Bau,  59,  103. 

Uru-gal,  "great  city,"  designation, 
of  nether-world,  592  ;  Nin-azu, 
god  of  U.,  592. 

Uruk,  ancient  center,  9,  35,  245,  445, 
472;  excavated,  9;  rulers,  37; 
temple  of  Nin-shakh,  93  ;  temple 
of  Lugal-banda,  95  ;  temple  of 
Nin-gul,    96  ;    origin    of    cult    of 


Nisaba,  102  ;  Nana,  or  Ishtar, 
the  great  goddess  of  Uruk,  Sr, 
84,  103,  242,  31 1,  445,  473,  475, 645, 
648;  importance  of  Uruk  in 
Nippur  inscriptions,  103  ;  worship 
of  Nisaba,  m  ;  temple  of  Nana  or 
Ishtar,  81,  242,  311,  531,  639; 
Uruk  supiiri,  472  ;  city  of  the 
Ki/.reti,  Ukhati,  and  Kharimati, 
475,  531  ;  conquered  by  Gilga- 
mesh,  473,  513;  attacked  by 
Khumbaba,  430 ;  Uruk  under 
Cassites  (?),  480;  attacked  by 
Dibbarra,  531  ;  dwelling  of  Ami 
and  Ishtar,  531  ;  zikkurat  at  U., 
619,  639. 

Uru-kagina,  patesi  of  Lagash,  53 ; 
king  of  Girsu,  56  ;  erects  temple 
of  Bau  at  Uru-azagga,  103. 

Utu,  surname  of  Shamash,  72 ; 
etymology,  73. 

Utukku,  a  class  of  spirits,  260  (cf. 
5.1). 

Vases,   sacred   objects,   652,  674-5  ; 

comparison     with     vases    in     the 

Solomonic  temple,  653. 
Venus  =  Ishtar,    name    of   planet, 

37°- 
Votive     inscriptions,     see     Religious 

Texts. 

Votive    offerings,     51,    57,    660    ff . ; 

lists   of,    165  ;  popular    character, 

668-9 ;    statues    of    kings    votive 

offerings,  669  ;  occasions  for,  670  ; 

offered  by  kings  and  laymen,  671, 

675;    various    objects,  671,  675; 

captured  gods  as  offerings,  675. 

Warka,  see  Uruk. 

Water,  see  Fire  and  Ea  ;  means  of 
purification,  276,  279,  282,  289. 


7S0 


INDEX. 


Wedge  writing,  styles  and  varieties, 
19,  20  ;  origin,  21  if.,  454,  455. 

Witchcraft,  origin  of  belief  in,  267  ; 
relationship  betw.  w.  and  demons, 
207  ;  the  sex  in  w.,  207,  342,  485; 
means  of  w.,  268  ;  protection 
nst,  269;  release  from,  2S5, 
657  ;  causes  of  punishment  by, 
291. 

Worship,  tree  worship  compared 
with  Hebrew-Phoenician  Ashera 
cult,  6S9  ;  symbolical  in  Bab.,  689. 

Xenophon,  contemporary  of  Ctesias, 

1. 
Xisuthras,  505  ;  see  Aara-Khasis. 

Yakhin,  name  of  column  in  Solo- 
mon's temple,  624. 

'/.ab.  lower,  tributary  of  Tigris,  192. 

Zabu,    king    of    Babylon,    restores 
Shamash  temple  at  Sippar,  117; 
tores  A  nu nit  temple  at  Agade, 
117. 

mitk,  festival  of  I'.au,  59,  677; 
festival  of  Marduk,  127,  631, 
678-9  j  festival  of  En-lil,  678; 
festival  of  Sin,  67S  ;  festival  of 
Nana,  678;  propitious  time  for 
asking  oracles,  628  9  ;  spring  and 
fall  the  time  of  the  /.,  678;  com- 
pared with  Jewish  New  Year,  687. 


Zakar,  god,  meaning  of  name,  172  ; 
place  of  worship,  172;  "wall  of 
Zakar,"  172  ;  relationship  to  Bel 
and  Belit,  172. 

Zamama,  god  of  the  2d  Bab.  period, 
168;  sanctuary  to  Z.  in  Kish, 
169  ;  god  of  battle  (identified  with 
Ninib,  640),  169;  Ninni  his  con- 
sort, 169;  in  incantations,  273; 
temple  of  Zamama-Ninib,  640. 

Zartnu,  son  of'Bau,  103. 

Za-za-uru,  son  of  Bau,  103. 

Zikkurat,  staged  tower,  615  ;  imita- 
tion of  mountain,  615  ;  house  of 
oracle,  622  ;  names  of  zikkurats, 
638  ff. 

Zodiac,  z.  system  outcome  of  reli- 
gious thought,  247,  434  ;  zodiacal 
interpretation  of  the  gods,  82, 
310-1,  434,  462-3,  676;  almost 
the  entire  zodiac  known  to  the 
Babylonians,  456. 

Zoroastrianism,  45. 

Zu,  personification  of  storm,  525, 
537  ;  myth  of  Zu,  537  ff.;  com- 
pared with  Tiamat  epic,  543  ;  ex- 
planation of  name,  537  ;  the  chief 
worker  of  evil,  53S  ;  under  the 
control  of  Shamash,  538  ;  robs 
the  tablets  of  fate,  540  ;  conquered 
by  Marduk,  542. 

Zurghul,  city  in  Babylonia,  578. 


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